Wall  of  Mycenaean  Troy 

On  the  left  is  seen  the  wall  of  the  VI  Stratum,  and  on  the  right  ap- 
IKjar  the  foundations  of  structures  built  in  Roman  times.  In  the  dis- 
tance stretches  the  valley  of  the  Simois. 


THE  VANDERBILT  ORIENTAL  SERIES     V*  -A 
edited  by 
Herbert  Gushing  Tolman  and  James  Henry  Stevenson 


WEISSENBORN'S 

HOMEEIC  LIFE 

TRANSLATED  AND  ADAPTED  TO  THE 
NEEDS  OF  AMERICAN  STUDENTS 


BY 

GILBERT  CAMPBELL  SCOGGIN,  M.A. 

Vanderbilt  University 

AND 

CHARLES  GRAY  BURKITT,  M.A. 

Vanderbilt  University 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW   YORK  :      CINCINNATI  :      CHICAGO 

AMERICAN  BOOK  COMPANY 


VAiNDEl!r.lLT  ORIENTAL  SERIES 

EDITED    BY    PROFESSORS 

HERBERT   GUSHING    TOLMAN,  Ph.D., 

AND 

JAMES    HENRY   STEVENSON,   Ph.D. 


INDEX  TO  THE  CHANDOGYA  UPANISHAD  '        {Ready) 

By  Charles  Edgak  Little,  Ph.D. 

THE  CHANDOGYA  UPANISHAD  (Nearly  Beady) 

Translatert  by  C.  E.  Little 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  CHANDOGYA  UPANISHAD 

Edited  by  C.  E.  Little  ' 

INDEX  OF  RITES  TO  THE  GRIHYA  SUTRAS 

By  H.  C.  TOLMAN 

OUTLINE  OF  VEDIC  MYTHOLOGY 

By   H.   C.   TOLMAN 

ASSYRIAN  AND  BABYLONIAN  CONTRACTS  (with  Aramaic 
Reference  Notes).  Tran.scribed  from  the  Orijdnals  in  the  British 
Museum,  with  Trausliteratiou  and  Translation  (Ready) 

By  J.  H.  Stevenson 

HISTORY  OF  THE  DISCOVERY  AND  DECIPHERMENT  OF 
THE  CUNEIFORM    INSCRIPTIONS 

By  J.  H.  Stevenson 

FINAL  CLAUSES  IN  THE  SEPTUAGINT  (Nearly  Ready) 

By  John  Wesley  Rice,  Ph.D. 

HEBREW  SYNONYMS 

By  Dr.  Isidore  Lewinthal 

ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  JEWISH  SYTVAGOGUE 

By  Isidore  Lewinthal 

HERODOTUS  AND  THE  EMPIRES  OF  THE  EAST.  Based  on 
Nikel's  Herodot  und  die  Keilscliriftfor.'*chung  (Ready) 

By  the  Editors 

THE    BOOK    OF    SAMUEL.    Text,   Vocabulary,  and  Grammatical, 
Syiiiactical,  and  Exegetical  Notes  for  the  Use  of  Intermediate  Classes 
By  J.  H.  Stevenson 

THE  MYCENAEAN  ARMOR.  Based  on  the  Recent  Conclusions  of 
Reichel  and  Robert 

By  Benjamin  Magruder  Drake,  Ph.D. 

HOMERIC  LIFE.  By  Professor  Edimiiid  Weisseiiborn.  (Ready) 
Translated  by  G.  C.  Scoggin,  M.A.,  and  Charles  Gray  Bdr- 
KITT,  M.A. 

THE  RIG  VEDA.     Part  I.    The  A^vin  Hymns 

Translated  by  Herbert  Z.  Kip,  Ph.D. 

Further  Announcements  Will  Follow 


Copyright,  1003,  by  Gilbert  Campbell  Scoggln  and  Charles 
Gray  Bcrkitt 


PREFACE 

In  translating  Professor  Edmund  Weissenborn's 
Leben  und  Sitte  hel  Ilomer  we  have  endeavored,  as 
far  as  possible,  to  adapt  it  to  the  needs  of  American 
students.  Consequently,  some  sections  which  are  of 
interest  chiefly  to  German  readers  have  been  omitted, 
while  others  have  been  amplified. 

For  a  more  complete  discussion  of  the  various  sub- 
jects treated,  references  have  been  given  to:  Harring- 
ton and  Tolman's  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology^  for 
a  fuller  treatment  of  the  origin  and  development  of 
the  myths;  Reichel's  IloineviscJie  Waffen  (edition  of 
1901),  for  modern  theories  respecting  Homeric  armor; 
Tsountas  and  Manatt's  The  Mycenaean  Age,  for  a  more 
detailed  account  of  the  recent  excavations.  We  regret 
that  we  have  not  been  able  to  refer  to  Professor  Sey- 
mour's Greece  in  the  Homeric  Age,  soon  to  appear 
in  the  Yale  Bicentennial  Series. 

For  illustrative  material  we  are  indebted  to:  Bau- 
meister's  Denhmdler ;  Brunn's  Griechische  Gotter- 
ideale,'  Guhl  and  Koner's  Lehen.  der  Griechen  %md 
Romer;  Dorpfeld's  Troja,  1893;  Heinrich's  Troja  hei 
Homer  und  in  der  Wirhlichkeit. 

The  chapter  dealing  with  the  Troad  is  from  an 
article  by  Professor  H.  C.  Tolnian,  written  soon  after 
a  visit  to  the  East,  and  is  quoted  with  his  permission. 
The  chapter  on  Hissarlik  is  translated  from  Dr.  Wil- 
helm  Dorpf  eld's  Troja,  Bericht  ilher  die  im  J  alive  1893 
in  Troja  veranstalteten  Ausgrahungen. 

(5) 


4961^82 


6  PREFACE 

A  select  bibliography  has  been  added,  which  we 
hope  will  prove  a  valuable  feature  of  the  work. 

We  are  aware  that  absolute  consistency  in  the  ren- 
dering of  Greek  names  is,  as  yet,  an  impossibility. 
As  a  rule,  the  Latin  form  has  been  given  when  such 
exists,  but  in  a  few  cases  unfamiliar  names  are  mere- 
ly transliterated.  Our  purpose  has  been  to  avoid  all 
strange  and  uncouth  forms  by  giving  those  current 
in  English  literature. 

In  referring  to  Homer  we  have  adopted  the  com- 
mon method  of  using  Greek  capitals  for  the  books  of 
the  Liad,  and  small  letters  for  those  of  the  Odyssey. 

We  would  here  express  our  thanks  to  Professor 
Weissenboru,  of  the  Gymnasium  at  Mtihlhausen,  for 
his  generous  permission  to  use  freely  his  excellent 
little  volume. 

Acknowledgment  is  due  to  Professor  Thomas  Car- 
ter and  Dr.  B.  M.  Drake,  of  Vanderbilt  University, 
for  their  careful  reading  of  the  proof. 

To  the  editors  of  the  Vanderbilt  Oriental  Series, 
Professors  H.  C.  Tolman  and  J.  H.  Stevenson,  we 
are  greatly  indebted  for  many  valuable  suggestions 
and  criticisms. 

Especially  to  Professor  Tolman,  our  teacher,  we 
wish  to  express  our  gratitude  for  his  constant  inter- 
est and  oversight  during  the  preparation  of  this  en- 
tire work.  Gilbert  Campbell  Scoggin, 

Charles  Gray  Burkitt. 

Vanderbilt  University, 
NashviUe,  Tenn.,  Feb.  14, 1903. 


TABLE  OF  COIS^TENTS 
THE  NATIONAL  EPIC 

Page 

1.  Mythical  Elements 21 

2.  The  Hero-Tales  of  the  Trojan  War 23 

3.  Blending  of  Myth  and  Hero-Tales  among  the  Greeks.  24 

4.  Relation  of  Myth  and  Hero-Story  Illustrated  by  the 

Nibelungenlied 26 

5.  Rise  of  Hero-Epic 28 

6.  Unity  of  Action 29 

7.  The  Beginning   of  the  Epic  Introduces  Us  into  the 

Midst  of  the  Action 30 

8.  Brevity  of  the  Main  Action:  the  Episodes 81 

9.  The  Epic  Is  a  Detailed  Picture  of  an  Entire  Period  of 

Civilization 32 

10.  Similes 33 

11.  Ornamental  Epithets 40 

12.  Meter 40 

RELIGION 
THE  HOMERIC  DIVINITIES 

13.  Origin  of  Religious  Conceptions 43 

Ckonidae 

14.  Zeus 44 

15.  Hera 46 

16.  Demeter 46 

17.  Hades 47 

18.  Poseidon 47 

Other  Olympic  Gods:  Children  of  Zeds 

19.  Apollo 49 

20.  Artemis 50 

(7) 


8  CONTENTS 

~~~  Page 

21.  Pallas  Athena J 50 

22.  Ares 51 

23.  Aphrodite 51 

24.  Hephaestus _  52 

25.  Hermes 53 

Worship 

26.  Relation  of  Man  to  Deity 53 

27.  Sacrilice  and  Prayer 54 

28.  Prophecy 55 

29.  The  Oath 57 

HOMERIC  SOCIETY 

Public  Life 

30.  The  Kingly  Power 58 

31.  The  Aristocracy , 59 

32.  The  Middle  Class 59 

33.  The  Slaves 60 

Private  Life 

34.  The  Family 61 

35.  Marriage 61 

36.  The  Marriage  Ceremony 62 

37.  The  Housewife 64 

38.  Children 64 

39.  Squires 65 

The  Rights  of  Strangers 

40.  Piracy 66 

41.  Hospitality 66 

42.  The  Suppliant 67 

43.  Forms  of  Social  Intercourse 68 

HOMERIC  ANTIQUITIES 

The  Homeric  House 

44.  The  Plan  of  the  House 71 

4o.  'J'he  Interior  of  the  Palace 74 

40.  Furniture 75 


CONTENTS  9 


Clothing  and  Mode  of  Life  Pagk 

47.  Weaving • '<^7 

48.  The  Dress  of  the  Men 78 

49.  The  Dress  of  the  Women 'i'8 

50.  The  Three  Meals 79 

51.  The  Chariot «1 

53.  Armor • 83 

Warfare 

53.  The  Duel « 89 

54.  Conflicts  between  Champions 90 

55.  The  General  Engagement 92 

The  Homeric  Ship 

56.  The  Shipbuilder 92 

57.  The  Barge  of  Odysseus 94 

Business,  Trade,  Sport,  and  Amusement 

58.  Trade 94 

59.  Industrial  Activity 95 

60.  Artists 97 

61.  The  Wealth  of  the  Homeric  Princes  and  Nobles 97 

62.  Horticulture 99 

63.  Fishing 99 

64.  Hunting • 100 

65.  Contests  and  Dancing 102 

HOMERIC  GENEALOGY 

66.  The  Dardanidae  of  Ilios 105 

67.  The  Aeacidae  of  Aegina 105 

68.  The  House  of  Odysseus  of  Ithaca 106 

69.  The  Tantalidae  of  the  Peloponnesus 106 

LANDS  AND  PEOPLE 

70.  Greece 107 

71.  The  Greek  Islands 108 

72.  The  Asiatic  Coast 110 

73.  More  Distant  Countries 110 

74.  Fabulous  Countries  and  Nations 112 

75.  Coui-se  of  the  Wanderings  of  Odysseus 112 


10 


CONTENTS 


THE  TROAD 

Page 

76.  General  Description  of  the  Plain 115 

77.  The  Scamander 120 

78.  The  Simois 123 

79.  Bunai-bashi 124 

80.  Schliemanu's  Troy.     11  Stratum 126 

81.  Dorpfeld's  Troy.     VI  Stratum 128 

82.  Mycenaean  Civilization 132 

83.  Was  There  a  Real  Troy? 138 

HISSARLIK. 

84.  The  VI  Stratum  and  the  Homeric  Pergamos 141 

85.  Table  of  the  Kine  Strata 143 

86    The  Dimensions  of  the  Sixth  City  Compared  with  Oth- 
er Citadels 144 


I 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Fio.  Paok 

Wall  at  Mycenaean  Troy.     VI  Stratum  (Frontispiece) . 

1.  Homer  (Naples,  National  Museum) 27 

2.  Odysseus  Presenting  Cup  to  Polyphemus 37 

3.  Olympian  Zeus  (from  a  Coin  of  Elis) 44 

4.  Zeus  Otricoli  (Rome,  Vatican) 45 

5   The  Praying  Boy  (Berlin) 54 

6.  Hera  Ludovisi  (Rome,  Museo  Boncampagni) 56 

7.  Demeter  of  Cnidus  (British  Museum) 68 

8.  Poseidon  (Rome,  Lateran) 70 

9.  Kyanos  Frieze  (from  Palace  at  Tiryns)  . .  74 

10.  The  Tiryns  Bull  (Fresco  from  Palace) 75 

11.  Armchair 76 

13.  Loom 77 

13.  Gold  Cup  from  Mj^cenae 80 

14.  Apollo  Belvidere  (Rome,  Vatican) ' 82 

15.  War  Chariot 83 

16.  The  Warrior  Vase  from  Mycenae 84 

17.  Breastplate ' 86 

18.  Artemis  of  Versailles  (Louvre) 88 

19.  Aphrodite  of  Melos  (Louvre) 91 

20.  Ship 93 

21.  Barge  of  Odysseus 94 

22.  Inlaid  Dagger  Blade  from  Mycenae 96 

23    Hephaestus  (Rome) 98 

24.  Hermes  (Florence,  UflSzi) 101 

25.  Athena  Parthenos  (Athens,  National  Museum) 104 

26.  Mount  Ida  from  the  Sea 115 

37.  The  Site  of  Troy 118 

28.  Siege  Scene  from  Silver  Vase  (Mycenae) 125 

29.  Gold  Ornaments  (with  Spirals  and  Rosettes)  from  II 

Stratum 127 

30.  Great  North-East  Tower  at  Troy 131 

31.  P'alse-Necked  Mycenaean  Jar 133 

(H) 


12  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Page 

32.  The  Lions'  Gate  at  Mycenae 133 

83.  False-Necked  Amphora  from  Crete 135 

34.  Gold  Cups  from  Vaphio,  Near  Sparta  (Athens,  Nation- 
al Museum) 136 


LIST  OF  PLANS 

Plan    I.  Palace  of  Odysseus 72 

Plan  II.  The  Citadel  of  VI  Stratum 129 

LIST  OF  MAPS 

Map  A.  The  Wanderings  of  Odysseus Ill 

Map  B.  The  Troad 131 


SELECT  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Mythology 

K.  P.  Harrington  and  H.  C.  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman 

Mythology,  Sanborn  &  Co.,  Boston,  1897,     Valuable  for  a 

study  of  the  origin  and  development  of  the  various  myths. 

C.  M.  Gayley,  The  Classic  Myths  in  English  Literature,  Ginn 

&  Co.,  Boston,  1893. 
H.  A.  Guerber,  Myths  of  Greece  and  Rome,  American  Book 

Co.,  New  York,  1893.     The  last  two  are  helpful  in  the  study 

of  the  myths  from  a  literary  standpoint.     They  are  beauti- 
fully illustrated. 
A.  S.  Murray,  Manual  of  Mythology,  revised  by  W.  H.  Klapp, 

Altemus,  Philadelphia,  1898. 
Bullfinch,  Age  of  Fable,  revised  by  J.  L.  Scott,  Philadelphia, 

1898. 
John  Eiske,  Myths  and  Myth-makers,  Houghton,  Mifflin  & 

Co.,  Boston,  1897. 
Louis  Dyer,  The  Gods  in  Greece,  London,  1891., 
E.  H.  Myer,  Indogermanische  Mythen,  Berlin,  1883. 
L.  Preller,  Griechische  Mythologie,    revised  by  C.   Robert, 

Berlin,  1887. 
W.  H.  Roscher,  Studien  zur  vergleichenden  Mythologie  der 

Griechen  und  Romer,  Leipzig,  1872. 
W.  H.  Roscher,  Ausfiihrliches  Le:x:ikon  der  griechischen  und 

romischen  Mythologie,  Leipzig,  1884. 
Luigi,  Religion  et  Morale  d'Homere,  1891. 

Translating  Homer 
Matthew  Arnold,  Studies  in  Celtic  Literature  and  on  Trans- 
lating Homer,  Macmillan,  New  York,  1883. 

(13) 


14  HOMERIC   LIFE 


H.  C.  Tolman,  The  Art  of  Translating,  Sanborn  &  Co.,  Bos- 
ton, 1900. 

C.  E.  Bennett  and  George  P.  Bristol,  The  Teaching  of  Latin 
and  Greek  in  the  Secondary  Schools,  Longmans,  Green  & 
Co.,  New  York,  1900. 

Veese  Translations 

George  Chapman,  The  Iliads  of  Homer,  Prince  of  Poets,  nev- 
er before  in  any  language  truly  translated;  with  a  comment 
upon  some  of  the  chief  places,  done  according  to  the 
Greek.  The  translation  of  the  Iliad  was  published  1598- 
1611;  the  Odyssey,  1614-1615. 

Alexander  Pope,  Iliad  (1720),  Odyssey  (under  his  supervision 
1735). 

William  Cowper,  Homer's  Iliad  and  Odyssey,  1791. 

W.  C.  Bryant,  The  Iliad  of  Homer,  1870;  The  Odyssey  of  Ho- 
mer, 1871. 

Prose  Translations 

Lang,  Leaf,  and  Myers,  The  Iliad  of  Homer,  Macmillan  & 

Co.,  1883. 
John  Purves,  The  Iliad  of  Homer,  London,  1891. 
G.  H.  Palmer,  The  Odyssey  of  Homer,  Houghton,  Mifflin  & 

Co.,  Boston,  1891. 
Butcher  and  Lang,  The  Odyssey  of  Homer,    Macmillan  & 

Co.,  1879. 

Critical  Texts 

A.  Ludwich,  Homeri  Carmina,  Ilias,  Vol.  I..  Leipzig,  1902. 
Van  Leeuwen  and  da  Costa,    Homeri    Odysseae    Carmina, 

Leyden,  1898. 
P.  Cauer,  Homeri  Ilias,  Leipzig,  1891. 
Pick,  Die  homeriche  Ilias  nach  ihrer  Entstehung  betrachtet 


SELECT   BIBLIOGRArHY  15 


und   mit   der   urspriinglichen    Sprachform    wiederherge- 

stellt,  1885. 
Fick,  Die  Odyssee  wiederhergestellt,  1887. 
Fick,  Das  Lied  vom  Zorne  Achills,  Bzzb.,  Beitr.,  1895. 
Fick,  Die  Erweiterung  der  Meuis,  Bzzb.,  Beitr.,  1898. 

Annotated  Editions 

Ameis  and  Hentze,  Homers  Ilias  fiir  den  Schulgebrauch  er- 
kliirt,  Leipzig.  A  most  lielpful  edition,  and  annually  revised. 
W.  Leaf,  The  Iliad  of  Homer,  Macmillan,  1894. 
D.  B.  Monro,  Homer,  Iliad,  Oxford,  1893. 
Leaf  and  Bayfield,  Homer,  Iliad,  Macmillan,  1898. 
Merry,  The  Odyssey,  Oxford,  1888. 

Lexicons 

Ebeling,  Lexicon  Homericum,  Leipzig,  1885. 

Gehring,  Index  Homericus,  Leipzig,  1895. 

Ebeling,  Schulworterbuch  zu  Homer,  Leipzig,  1890. 

Capelle,  Worterbuch  iiber  die  Gedichte  des  Homeros  und  die 
Homeriden,  1889. 

Autenrieth-Keep,  Homeric  Dictionary,  American  Book  Com- 
pany, 1891. 

The  Homeric  Question 

Frederich  August  Wolf,  Prolegomena  ad  Homerum,  1795. 
Karl  Lachmann,  Betrachtungen  iiber  Homers  Ilias,  1837. 
Grote,  History  of  Greece,  Vol.  II.,  1846. 
Kirchhoff,  Die  homerische  Odyssee  und  ihre  Entstehung,  1839. 
W.  Christ,  Homeri  Iliadis  Carmina  seiuncta  discreta   emen- 

data. 
H.  Bonitz,  Ueber  den  Ursprung  der  homerischen  Gedichte, 

1880. 


16  ^OMEKIC  LIFE 


P.  Cauer,  Grundfragen  der  Homerkritik,  1895. 
C.  Robert,  Studien  zur  Ilias.  1901. 

E.Weissenborn,  Achilleis  und  Ilias.  EiaVersuch  zurEinigung 
in   der   homerischen    Frage    (Progr.    von   Miihlhausen  in 

Thur.),  1890. 
W.  D.  Geddes,  The  Problem  of  the  Homeric  Poems,  London, 

1878. 
W.  Leaf,  A  Companion  to  the  Iliad,  London,  1893. 
A.  Lang,  Homer  and  the  Epic,  London,  1893. 

Study  of  Homek  in  Antiquity 

Dindorf  and  Maass,  Scholia,  eight  volumes,  1855-1887. 
La  Roche,  Die  Homerische  Textkritik  im  Alterthum,  1866. 
Lehrs,  De  Aristarchi  Studiis  Homericis,  1882. 
Ludwich,  Aristarchs  Homerische  Textkritik,  1885. 

Language 

Monro,  Homeric  Grammar,  Oxford,  1891. 

Seymour,  Homeric  Language  and  Verse,  Boston,  1885. 

Piatt,  Homer's  Similes  (Journal  of  Philology),  1895. 

Hunt,  Homer's  Wit  and  Humor  (Transactions  of  American 

Philological  Association),  1890. 
Jebb,  Introduction  to  Homer,  London,  1893. 
Symonds,  Greek  Poets,  Vol.  I  .  51-160. 

Antiquities 

Seymour,  Greece  in  the  Homeric  Age,  Yale  Bicentennial  Pub- 
lications (in  preparation). 

Tsountas  and  Manatt,  The  Mycenaean  Age.  Boston,  1897. 

Schuchhardt-Sellers,  Schliemann's  Excavations,  London  and 
New  York,  1891. 

Frazer,  Pausanias,  Vols.  III.  and  V.,  London  and  New  York, 
1898. 


SELECT   BIBLIOGRAPHY  17 


Dorpfeld,  Troja,  1893.     Bericht  iiber  di«  im  Jahre  1893  in 

Troja  veranstalteten  Ausgrabuugen,  Leipzig. 
Dorpfeld,    Mittheilungen    des    archiiologischen     Institutes, 

Athen,  1894. 
Reicliel,  Homerische  Waffen,  2d  Edition,  Wien.  1901. 
Drake,  M3^cenaean  Armor,  based  on  the  recent  conclusions 

of    Reichel    and    Robert,    Vanderbilt  Oriental  Series  (in 

preparation). 
Buchholz,  Homerische  Realien,  1885. 
Helbig,  Das  homerische  Epos  aus  den  Denkmiilern  erkliirt, 

1887. 
Robert,  Studien  zur  Ilias,  1901 
Joseph,  Die  Palaste  des  homerischeu  Epos,  1895. 
Keller,  Homeric  Society,  New  York,  1902. 
Moreau,  Les  assemblees  politiques  d'aprus  I'lliade  et  I'Odys- 

sre,  1892. 
Muller,  Die  Sage  von  trojauischen   Kriege  und   die  homer- 
ische Dichtung,  1893. 
Scbenkl,  Die  homerische  Palastbeschreibung  in  Od.  und  ihre 

alten  ErkUirer,  1893. 
rorchhammer.  Homer.      Seine    Sprache;    die    Kampfplatze 

seiner  Heroen  und  Gotter  in  der  Troas,  1893. 
Ludwich,   Schliemanns  Ausgrabungen   und  die  homerische 

Kultur,  1893. 
Doerwald,  Der  Palast  des  Odysseus,  1894. 
Fellner,  Der  homerische  Bogen,  1894. 

Albrecht,  Kampf  und  Kampfschilderung  bei  Homer,  1895. 
Heinrich,  Troja  bei  Homer  und  in  der  Wirklichkeit,  1895. 
Tolman,  A  visit  to  the  plain  of  Troy,  with  brief  account  of  the 

excavations  of  1893. 
Fellner,  Die  homerische  Flora,  Wien,  1897. 


18  HOMERIC   LIFE 


Kretsclimer,  Die  thrakisch-phrygischen  Stamme  (Geschichte 

der  Griech.     Sprache),  Gottingen,  1896. 
Hellems,  The  Women  of  the  Homeric  Poems,  1895. 
Piatt,  The  Slaying  of  the  Suitors  (Journal  of  Philology),  1895. 
Beisch,  Ithaka,  1895. 
Isham,  Homeric  Palace,  1898. 

Terret,  Homer,  Etude  Historique  et  Critique,  1899. 
Kluge,  Vorhomerische  Abbildungen  homerischer  Kampfsce- 

nen  (N.  Jahrh.  f.  Phil.),  1891. 
Gardner,  New  Chapters  in  Greek  History,  1892. 
Menge,  Ithaka  der  Wirklichkeit(Zeitsch.  f.  d.  Gymn.  XXXV.), 

1891. 
Heicliel,  Die  Orsothyre  in  homerischen  Megaron  (Archaeol. 

Epigraph.  Mittheilgn.  ausOesterreich-Ungai'n),  1895. 
Pavlatos,  'H  a'Arfii/q  'IdoK//  Toi)  H)jifjpov. 
Michael,  Das  homerische  und  das  heutige  Ithaka. 
Jevons,  Iron  in  Homer  (Journal  of  Hellenic  Studies),  1892. 
Haskins,  Homeric  Fishingtackle  (Journal  of  Philology),  1891. 
Seymour,  Homeric  Viands  (Proc.  Am.  Philol.  Assn.),  1899. 


HOMERIC  LIFE 

(19) 


7roA.Aa»v  8'  avOpiiiTTOiv  lhf.v  aorea  koa,  voov  eyvw 

(20) 


THE  :n"atio^al  epic 

1.  Mythical  Elements.  The  National  Epic  takes  its 
subject-matter  from  primitive  folk-myths  and  hero- 
contests.  By  the  Greeks  all  nature  was  peopled 
with  godlike  beings.  The  bright  noonday  sky  they 
adored  as  Zeus,  and  the  starry  heaven  of  night  as  his 
spouse,  Hera.  The  radiant  sun  was  worshiped  as 
Phoebus  Apollo,  the  moon  as  Apollo's  sister,  Arte- 
mis. The  blue  sky,  returning  after  the  thunder- 
storm, was  deitied  as  Pallas  Athena,  the  daughter  of 
Zeus,  sprung  from  his  head,  and  the  storm  wind  be- 
came Hermes,  messenger  of  the  gods.  In  every 
fountain  dwelt  a  nymph,  in  every  river  a  god;  the 
shady  grove  was  inhabited  by  dryads  (Z,  420),  and 
the  strangely  formed  stalactite  cave  was  the  Naiads' 
home  (v,  107).  About  these  divinities  imagination 
invented  strange  myths. 

In  South  Thessaly,  where  Mount  Pelion  overlooks 
the  surrounding  landscape,  old  Peleus  ruled  as  king. 
He  had  married  the  sea  nymph  Thetis,  and  the  fruit 
of  this  union  was  swift-footed  Achilles,  who  was  nur- 
tured and  brought  up  in  his  youth  by  Chiron,  the 
mountain  centaur.  The  mists  rising  from  the  sea 
settled  about  the  summit  of  Mount  Pelion;  out  of  the 
bosom  of  the  cloud  sprang  the  waters,  which,  gather- 
ing into  a  small  mountain  stream,  flowed  downward 
with    ever-increasing    speed  and   uproar.^     Like  a 

^Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology, 

77,  78. 

(21) 


22  HOMERIC  LIFE 


youthful  hero,  all-conquering,  himself  unconquered, 
the  mountain  stream  (Achilles)  rushed  to  the  vale 
below,  and  thus  far  was  he  his  father's  glory  (Pa- 
troclus).  But  in  the  plain  the  brook  slackened  its 
speed,  trickled  away  in  the  sand,  and  was  finally  dried 
up  by  the  heat  of  the  sun ;  the  hero  was  slain  by  the 
arrows  of  Apollo. 

There  is  another  myth  which  came  from  those 
primitive  times  when  the  Greeks  were  still  a  wan- 
dering people.  Zeus,  who  likewise  bore  the  names 
of  Agamemnon  and  Menelatis,  was  deprived  of  his 
consort,  Helen  (the  moonlight),  by  Paris,  the  god  of 
the  underworld  (the  darkness);  but  subsequently  she 
was  victoriously  regained.  In  another  district  the 
hero  of  light,  who  fought  with  the  god  of  darkness 
and  was  wounded  by  him  in  the  heel,  was  called  Di- 
omedes,  a  favorite  of  Zeus  and  Athena. 

In  like  manner  poetic  imagination  pictured  time  as 
a  never-aging  woman,  who,  sitting  at  the  loom,  spins 
day  after  day,  only  to  undo  her  work  again  at  night. 
In  her  youth  she  had  been  married  to  the  bright  god 
of  spring,  but  the  hero  of  the  changing  seasons  cannot 
remain  with  his  spouse;  he  must  depart  from  her  in 
order  to  make  a  journey  to  the  far  west,  for  the  year 
is  passing  and  life  is  fleeting.  Therefore  Odysseus 
must  enter  the  realm  of  shades.  The  all-concealing 
underworld.  Calypso,  receives  him  and  wishes  to  de- 
tain him;  with  her  he  should  live  forever  in  happi- 
ness and  delight.  Furthermore,  there  was  a  belief, 
largely  based  on  Egyptian  ideas,  that,  like  an  enchant- 
ress (Circe),  this  lower  world  changes  into  wild  beasts 
those  coming  to  her  in  the  course  of  their  souls'  wan- 
dering.    While  the  wife,  grieving  for  the  companion 


THE  NATIONAL  EPIC  23 

of  her  youth,  again  at  night  unravels  her  fabric,  the 
thousand  shining  stars  swarm  about  her  as  suitors. 
But  the  reahu  of  the  dead  cannot  detain  the  hero. 
With  a  nfever-failing  regularity  the  year  rolls  round 
and  ushers  in  the  spring.  So  Odysseus  returns  home 
to  Penelope,  who  is  faithfully  awaiting  him,  and  at 
the  feast  of  Apollo  the  sun  god's  arrows  dissipate  the 
night  with  all  her  stars. 

2.  The  Hero-Tales  of  the  Trojan  War.  Furthermore, 
tradition  told  of  great  wars  that  were  waged  in  the 
time  of  the  Greek  migration.  As  memorable  events 
of  those  early  days  there  stood  out  prominently 
the  futile  battles  about  seven-gated  Thebes  and  the 
final  capture  of  Troy.  The  excavations  in  the  sixth 
stratum  of  the  nine  buried  cities  of  Hissarlik,  begun 
by  Schliemann  and  continued  by  Dorpfeld,  support 
the  view  that  ancient  Troy  belonged  to  the  period  of 
Mycenaean  civilization.^  The  tales  of  the  rape  of 
Helen  and  the  capture  of  the  city  by  means  of  the 
wooden  horse  point  to  the  fact  that  the  Trojan  war 
fell  in  the  time  of  the  first  migration  of  the  Greeks 
into  the  country  bordering  on  the  Mediterranean, 
since  they,  being  inexperienced  in  navigation,  still 
called  their  vessels  "horses  of  the  sea."  At  the 
same  period  occurred  also  the  long-continued  strug- 
gles on  the  part  of  those  early  settlers  at  Tiryns,  My- 
cenae, Thebes,  and  Orchomenus,  a  people  who  were 
probably  of  Phoenician  origin,  and  who  had  already 
reached  a  high  state  of  civilization.  These  contests, 
which  finally  led  to  a  political  union  of  hostile  tribes, 
found  expressi(m  in  the  horrible  tales  concerning  the 

iSee  §81. 


24  HOMERIC  LIFE 


house  of  Mycenaean  Atreiis  and  the  family  of  The- 
ban  LabdacLis,  in  the  story  of  the  fratricidal  war  be- 
tween Eteocles  and  Polynices,  and  in  the  recital  of 
the  wretched  fate  of  the  heroes  who  returned  from 
Troy. 

3.  Blending  of  Myth  and  Hero  -  Tales  among  the 
Greeks.  Handed  down  from  parents  to  children,  from 
times  immemorial,  were  various  myths  which  had 
lived  in  the  mouths  of  the  people,  and  which,  being 
associated  with  the  events  of  the  great  struggle  about 
Troy,  had  grown  into  a  single  narrative.  Among 
these  may  be  mentioned  the  rape  of  Helen,  the  pre- 
mature death  of  the  youthful  hero,  Achilles,  the  wan- 
'derings  of  Odysseus  into  the  realm  of  the  shades,  and 
the  faithfulness  of  Penelope.  In  the  course  of  cen- 
turies the  stories  of  the  siege  of  Troy  and  the  events 
connected  with  it  so  magnified  this  war  at  home  that 
everything  centered  about  it.  Hence  out  of  these 
mythical  creations  arose  kings  and  heroes  whose  fates 
were  closely  associated  with  the  Trojan  war,  and 
whose  divine  descent  alone  recalled  their  original  di- 
vine nature.  The  difierent  epithets  which  oneand  the 
same  god  bore  among  difierent  tribes,  or  as  a  result  of 
diflferent  divine  manifestations,  made  it  possible  to 
create  new  personalities.  So  Agamemnon  and  Mene- 
laiis,  which  were  in  reality  only  different  epithets  of 
Zeus,  became  the  two  royal  brothers;  so  Patroclus, 
who  was  originally  the  same  person  as  Achilles,  be- 
came the  friend  of  the  latter  and  suffered  the  self- 
same fate  at  the  hands  of  Apollo;  so  the  mistress  of 
the  realm  of  shadows,  Calypso-Circe,  became  two 
goddesses,  both  of  whom  detained  Odysseus.  Recol- 
lection of  early  immigration  became  so  obscure  that 


THE  NATIONAL  EPIC  25 

the  Greeks  believed  themselves  to  be  indigenous  to 
the  soil,  and  only  the  nol)le  families  preserved  tradi- 
tions concernino^  that  foreign  land  whence  they  had 
come.  The  Cadmaeans  regarded  Phoenicia  as  their 
home;  the  Pelopidae,  Phrygia;  the  Danaidae,  Egypt. 
In  this  way,  what  had  been  an  immigration  into 
Greece  now  was  regarded  as  an  expedition  from 
Greece.  When  many  centuries  had  passed  after 
thos6  great  national  movements,  such  as  the  siege  of 
Troy,  the  struggle  for  the  possession  of  Mycenae,  and 
the  battles  about  Thebes,  the  wandering  of  the  Do- 
rians— the  last  stragglers  in  the  migration — again 
threw  the  Greek  peninsula  into  commotion.  Through 
the  pressure  of  the  Aeolians  on  the  north  and  the 
strength  of  the  Achaean  sovereignty  in  the  Pelopon- 
nesus, these  tribes  were  forced  to  emigrate  to  the 
islands  of  the  sea  and  to  the  coast  of  Asia  Minor. 
The  lonians,  also  disturbed  by  the  Dorians,  were 
fired  with  the  common  desire  of  migrating  eastward, 
since  the  fruitfulness  of  the  Asiatic  coast  allured 
them,  and  the  rich  conquests  of  the  first  emigrants 
drew  others  after  them.  But  the  new  struggles  with 
the  Asiatics  recalled  the  old  traditional  war  about 
the  walls  of  Ilios.  The  contact  and  cooperation  of 
the  various  tribes  led  to  the  belief  that  they,  with 
their  myths  and  hero-contests,  were  related  to  the 
Trojan  war,  and  that  every  district,  with  its  chief,  had 
participated  in  it.  Accordingly,  a  creative  and  all- 
comprehensive  imagination  wove  the  complete  cycle 
of  Trojan  tales  into  a  single  long  narrative,  which 
was  repeated  from  generation  to  generation.  It  be- 
gan with  the  marriage  of  Pelcus  and  Thetis,  and  ex- 
tended down  to  the  final  capture  of  the  enemy's  city 


26  HOMERIC  LIFE 


and  the  return  of  the  heroes.  The  poets  sought  glory 
by  rehearsing,  with  the  accompaniment  of  the  lyre, 
at  royal  feasts  and  popular  festivals,  the  most  beauti- 
ful episodes  out  of  this  material  relating  to  Troy. 
In  the  person  of  Homer  there  arose  the  great  poet  of 
the  national  hero-epic,  who,  with  his  Achilleid,  so  far 
eclipsed  all  other  poems  that  they  passed  into  obliv- 
ion, and  whom  as  the  master  of  heroic  song  all  suc- 
ceeding poets  followed  closely  in  form  and  content. 
Hence  out  of  the  successive  contributions  of  later 
bards  were  formed  the  two  great  epics,  the  Iliad  and 
the  Odyssey. 

4.  Relation  of  Myth  and  Hero-Story  Illustrated  by  the 
Nibelungenlied.  Even  in  more  modern  times  the  stu- 
dent can  see  a  striking  illustration  of  the  relation  of 
myth  and  hero-story  in  the  German  Nibelungenlied. 
As  in  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey  the  principal  heroes 
and  actors  are  of  mythical  origin,  so  likewise  Sig- 
fried,  Brunhild,  the  Nibelungs,  Kriemhild,  and  Ha- 
gen  are  godlike  beings.  Sigfried,  the  shining  god  of 
spring  with  all  its  blessings,  overcomes  the  dragon  of 
winter  and  liberates  from  her  sleep  of  death  Brun- 
hild (earth),  who  is  surrounded  by  the  fires  of  hell. 
But  the  spring  is  of  short  duration;  the  hero  must  go 
forth  upon  an  adventure.  Victoriously  he  penetrates 
the  realm  of  mist;  marries  Kriemhild,  the  sister  of 
the  Nibelungs;  wins  for  the  Nibelung  Gunnar  his 
former  love,  the  Valkyrie  Brunhild,  and  in  conse- 
quence suffers  death  at  the  hands  of  Hagen.  But 
the  events  of  the  German  migration,  with  their  all- 
convulsing,  all-transforming  battles;  the  destruction 
of  the  Burgundiau  kingdom  by  the  Huns  under  Gun- 
ther;  the  great  battle  at  Chalons;  the  murder  of  At- 


iifeiiiiiiiilMi^^ 


Fig.  1.    Homer 

(Naples,  National  Museum.) 

(27) 


28  HOMERIC  LIFE 


tila  by  his  wife  Ildico,  who  as  sister  of  the  Burgun- 
dian  kings  avenged  their  death;  the  mighty  deeds  of 
the  victorious  Theodoric — all  result  in  a  transforma- 
tion and  a  final  blending  of  mythical  action  with  his- 
torical events.  While  the  myths  and  stories  of  the 
migration  were  handed  down  for  centuries,  imagina- 
ry forms  and  miraculous  deeds,  in  the  popular  mind, 
lost  all  supernatural  character.  The  godlike  beings 
were  changed  to  men,  and  became  companions  of  the 
celebrated  warrior  kings.  The  myths  perished  en- 
tirely in  the  story  of  the  splendor  of  the  Burgundian 
kingdom,  the  mighty  battles  of  the  Burgundian  kings, 
and  their  destruction  by  the  Huns. 

5.  Rise  of  Hero-Epic.  In  the  Nibelungenlied  we 
meet  a  process  remarkably  similar  to  that  which  was 
at  work  in  the  composition  of  the  Iliad  and  the 
Odyssey.  When  the  recollection  of  the  stories  of 
the  great  migrations  became  again  vivid  through  the 
crusades,  with  those  splendid  wars  and  achievements 
which  stirred  and  transformed  the  whole  world,  the 
poet  was  impelled  to  sing  in  hero-song  what  had  come 
down  to  him  from  the  past.  To  a  striking  degree  the 
German  epic  resembles  the  Iliad.  In  the  former,  the 
war  with  the  Huns  does  not  constitute  the  main  ac- 
tion, nor  in  the  latter  do  the  contests  of  the  Trojans; 
but,  as  in  the  Iliad,  Achilles's  heroic  character  and 
devotion  to  his  friend  constitute  the  central  point 
about  which  everything  is  grouped  and  to  which  all 
the  war  tales  are  linked,  so,  in  the  Nibelungenlied, 
the  central  point  is  Sigfried's  love  and  death.  As  the 
whole  Iliad  is  pervaded  by  the  thought  that  in  the 
mind  of  the  hero  honor  and  loyalty  to  a  friend  stand 
higher  than  even  his  own  life,  as  Odysseus  rejects  im- 


THE  NATIONAL  EPIC  29 

mortality  and  a  life  of  abundance  and  delight  for  his 
home  and  wife,  so  likewise  in  the  Nibelungenlied,  in 
spite  of  the  looser  connection  of  its  parts,  the  idea 
prevails  that  men  must  preserve  loyalty  under  all 
circumstances.  So  Sigfried  remains  steadfast  even 
unto  death  in  the  service  to  which  he  has  voluntarily 
pledged  himself;  Kriemhild  as  a  faithful  wife  avenges 
the  death  of  her  beloved  to  the  destruction  of  her 
own  family;  Gunther  and  his  brothers,  Hagen  and 
Volker,  maintain  their  loyalty  as  men  and  kings  in 
their  devotion  to  their  people. 

6.  Unity  of  Action.  Not  only  do  both  Iliad  and 
Odyssey  present  one  hero  and  one  idea,  but  unity  of 
treatment  prevails' throughout  both  epics.  The  strife 
between  Achilles  and  Agamemnon,  at  the  opening  of 
the  Iliad,  is  the  cause  of  all  the  disasters  of  the  poem 
up  to  the  death  of  Hector.  When  Achilles  with- 
draws from  the  light  on  account  of  the  inconsiderate 
action  of  the  tyrannical  and  selfish  king,  Agamem- 
non goes  forth  against  the  Trojans  without  him,  but 
is  defeated,  and  along  with  other  heroes  is  seriously 
wounded.  The  distress  of  the  Greeks,  whose  vessels 
are  already  threatened  by  the  Trojan  firebrands,  im- 
pels the  sympathetic  Patroclus  to  don  Achilles's  ar- 
mor and  to  advance  at  the  head  of  the  Myrmidons  to 
assist  the  Greeks,  who  are  sorely  pressed.  Here  he 
perishes.  The  deep  grief  at  the  loss  of  his  dearest 
friend  becomes  in  Achilles  the  dominant  passion, 
causing  him  to  forget  his  resentment  toward  Aga- 
memnon. Although  Achilles  knows  that  soon  after 
Hector's  fall  he  too  must  meet  his  fate,  yet  he  is 
driven  by  loyalty  to  his  friend  and  by  his  heroic 
character  to  avenge  the  death  of  Patroclus,  and  does 


30  HOMERIC  LIFE 


not  rest  until  he  has  slain  Hector.  The  unity  of  ac- 
tion pervading  all  the  events  of  the  Iliad  is  the  chief 
reason  why  we  must  regard  one  poet  as  the  creator  of 
its  principal  part,  the  Achilleid,  the  main  action  of 
which  is  assumed  by  the  other  portions  of  the  poem. 
Likewise  in  the  Odyssey  the  central  idea  is  that  the 
man  of  noble  character  values  love  for  his  own  peo- 
ple and  loyalty  to  his  nation  far  beyond  a  life  of 
pleasure  and  delight  in  exile.  In  the  same  way  (to 
illustrate  again  by  the  German  epic)  unity  pervades 
the  whole  Nibelungenlied.  Although  the  connection 
of  the  adventures  appears  much  looser,  and  the 
poem  itself  falls  into  two  great  divisions,  yet  the 
one  idea  of  loyalty  is  everywhere  supreme.  Kriem- 
hild  is  the  character  which  binds  both  parts  into  a 
whole,  and  all  episodes  become  subordinate  to  the 
main  action.  The  exploits  of  the  Trojan  war,  the  re- 
turn of  the  heroes,  and  the  tribal  migrations,  which 
influenced  and  convulsed  the  whole  nation  for  centu- 
ries, afterwards  furnished  material  for  the  national 
epic.  So  it  is  that  this  setting  forms  the  broad  and 
dark  background  for  brilliant  and  soul-stirring  ac- 
tion. 

7.  The  Beginning  of  the  Epic  Introduces  Us  into  the 
Midst  of  the  Action.  The  poem  plunges  in  medias  res. 
It  begins  with  that  point  of  the  action  or  situation 
which  is  a  crisis  so  comprehensive  as  to  open  up  a 
wide  perspectiv>e  toward  the  future  and  the  final  goal. 
The  description  of  the  plague  and  the  fateful  strife 
between  the  great  hero  and  the  king  furnishes  us  a 
clear  insight  into  the  conditions  of  the  war  and  the 
situations  in  the  camp.  It  also  reveals  to  us  the 
inner  nature  and  the  different  characters  of  the  he- 


THE  NATIONAL  EPIC  31 

roes  and  awakens  our  sympathy  for  Achilles,  who,  so 
popular  and  so  noble,  is  to  meet  an  early  death.  In 
the  Iliad  we  visit  the  Greek  camp  with  Chryses,  the 
priest  of  Apollo,  as  he  comes  to  ransom  his  captive 
daughter.  In  the  Odyssey  we  accompany  the  god- 
dess Athena  to  Ithaca,  and  there  learn  the  vain  im- 
portunities of  the  suitors  and  the  helpless  condition 
of  the  family  of  the  absent  Odysseus.  We  hear  the 
goddess  as  she  encourages  Telemachus  to  seek  infor- 
mation about  his  absent  father.  Our  sympathy  for 
Telemachus  and  our  aversion  to  the  arrogant  nobles 
reach  their  highest  point  when  we  hear  of  their  plots 
against  the  life  of  the  young  prince. 

8.  Brevity  of  the  Main  Action:  the  Episodes.  Unity 
of  treatment  requires  that  the  action  be  limited  to 
fi  comparatively  short  time.  Accordingly,  out  of 
the  ten  years  of  the  Trojan  war  Homer  has  selected 
only  a  few  days — up  to  the  death  of  Hector  only 
six  eventful  days— in  which  the  great  events  take 
place.  Of  the  forty-one  days  embraced  in  the  action 
of  the  Odyssey,  only  sixteen  form  a  vital  part  of  the 
narrative;  and  if  we  take  the  Telemachy  as  contem- 
poraneous with  the  adventures  of  Odysseus,  the  num- 
ber is  actually  reduced  to  ten.  So,  too,  in  Goethe's 
Hermann  und  Dorothea,  where  the  author  endeavors 
to  imitate  Homeric  style,  we  find  the  action  limited 
to  half  a  day.  In  his  treatment  of  the  action  the 
poet  is  accustomed  to  interweave  a  retrospect  of  the 
events  which  have  preceded.  Hence  Homer  has  Odys- 
seus himself  relate  his  adventures  from  the  sack  of 
Troy  to  his  arrival  at  the  Isle  of  Calypso;  in  the  Ni- 
belungenlied,  Hagen  narrates  Sigfried's  youthful 
deeds;  and  in  Goethe's  poem,  cited  above,  the  magis- 


32  HOMERIC  LIFE 


trate  depicts  the  terrors  of  the  revolution  and  Doro- 
thea's fate.  In  general,  where  the  poet  comes  to 
speak  of  new  persons  and  great  events,  he  treats 
with  clearness,  breadth,  and  faithful  minuteness  all 
that  is  known  to  him  of  their  past.  This  addition  of 
episodes  and  their  relative  independence  of  the  main 
action  form  a  striking  peculiarity  of  epic  poetry. 
There  are  depicted  for  us  the  quiet  existence  and  ac- 
tivity of  men  and  events  in  all  their  completeness. 
Therefore  we  do  not  hasten  impatiently  toward  the 
goal,  but  tarry  with  interest  at  every  step. 

9.  The  Epic  Is  a  Detailed  Picture  of  an  Entire  Period 
of  Civilization.  The  poet  gives  everything  which 
stands  in  relation  to  the  main  action;  so  the  stream 
of  his  narrative  flows  along,  ever  broader,  ever  richer, 
ever  mightier,  and  his  poem  assumes  the  shape  of  a 
world  picture.  All  antiquity,  with  its  conditions,  the 
customs  of  the  people,  the  public  and  private  life  in 
all  phases,  are  revealed  before  our  eyes.  The  fates  of 
the  heroes  are  under  the  influence  of  a  world  of  law 
and  morals,  for  "the  will  of  Zeus  is  accomplished" 
(A,  ,5).  The  poet  surveys  with  deep  insight  the  activ- 
ity of  the  world,  and  penetrates  the  relation  of 
things;  he  realizes  how  all  human  action  strives  to- 
ward a  divinely  appointed  goal;  he  perceives  that 
greatness  is  reached  only  when  one  is  in  harmony 
with  the  divine,  and  that  those  who  insolently  disre- 
gard the  right  bring  upon  themselves  an  avenging 
fate.  Zeus,  the  father  of  men  and  gods,  is  the  giver 
of  every  blessing,  being  himself  the  personification 
of  kindness  and  compassion;  he  is  the  protector  of 
the  weak,  the  wretched,  the  persecuted,  and  he  weighs 
destiny  in  his  righteous  hand;  the  gods  are  his  help- 


THE  NATIONAL  EPIC  33 

ers  and  agents  in  the  exercise  of  his  universal  sov- 
ereignty. 

10.  Similes.  Similes  enliven  epic  poetry.  By  means 
of  a  comparison  with  well-known  phenomena  of  na- 
ture or  of  human  life  they  bring  the  point  of  the  ac- 
tion or  situation  ^  vividly  before  the  imagination.  A 
peculiarity  of  Homeric  similes  consists  not  so  much 
in  the  fact  that  they  render  conspicuous  and  emphatic 
the  point  of  similarity  as  that  they  give  in  the  com- 
parison a  complete  and  well-rounded  picture,  with  all 
details  and  attendant  circumstances.  Thus  we  are  led 
into  a  new  circle  of  ideas;  our  imagination  is  excited; 
we  grasp  the  epic  deed  or  situation  easily  and  quick- 
ly, and  present  it  vividly  to  our  minds.  Similes  con- 
stantly accompany  the  episodes.  The  poet  is  accus- 
tomed to  employ  them  especially  where  a  new  element 
enters  into  the  action  or  where  things  take  a  new 
turn.  In  order  to  render  such  a  point  conspicuous, 
several  similes  often  follow  in  quick  succession.  For 
example,  the  first  advance  of  the  Greeks  to  battle  (B, 
45.5-480)  is  clearly  portrayed  by  means  of  six  pictures 
illustrating  different  stages,  from  the  assembling  of 
the  troops  to  their  final  preparation  for  attack. 

When  Menelaiis  (F,  23)  perceives  Paris  boastfully 
striding  forward,  clad  in  his  leopard's  skin,  he  springs 
down  from  his  chariot  and  rushes  toward  him  as  the 
bloodthirsty  lion  which  leaps  upon  its  prey.  Paris 
shrinks  back  in  terror  like  the  man  who,  pale  with 
horror,   starts   back    before   a    threatening    serpent 

(r,  33).  ^ 

The  last  decisive  onslaught  of  the  Trojans,  at  the 


^Seymour,  Homeric  Language  and  Verse,  pp.  16,  17. 
3 


34  HOMERIC   LIFE 


end  of  the  15th  book,  is  pictured  by  four  compari- 
sons (O,  605-634). 

The  sorrow  of  Patroclus  at  the  misfortune  of  the 
Greeks  is  depicted  in  two  similes:  Tears  spring 
from  his  eyes  like  the  fountain  from  the  rock  (11,  3); 
and  he  weeps  like  a  little  girl  who  clings  to  the  gar- 
ment of  her  mother,  and  with  tears  in  her  eyes  begs 
to  be  taken  up  into  her  arms  (n,  6). 

The  Myrmidons  are  eagerly  bent  upon  battle,  like 
wolves  that  have  sated  themselves  upon  the  stag,  and. 
dripping  with  blood,  rush  forward  to  the  forest 
stream  (11,  156).  The  Greeks  pour  forth  from  the 
line  of  ships  like  a  swarm  of  exasperated  wasps  that 
rush  upon  the  first  passer-by  (IT,  259). 

When  Achilles  (T,  356)  arouses  the  Greeks  to  bat- 
tle, the  troops  stream  forth  from  the  ships,  and  every 
where  bronze  helmets,  shields,  and  lances  gleam  like 
glittering  snowliakes  that  fall  from  heaven  under  the 
breath  of  the  cold  north  wind.  Achilles's  shield, 
when  he  has  donned  his  armor  (T,  375),  flames  in 
bright  splendor  as  a  fire  which,  burning  upon  the 
mountain,  shines  far  out  to  sea.  When  the  plain  of 
the  Scamander  ( Y,  1 64 )  is  fil led  with  warriors  and  char- 
iots, and  Aeneas  steps  forth  from  the  foe,  Achilles 
starts  up  like  a  lion  that,  hard  pressed  by  a  crowd  of 
hunters,  lashes  his  sides  with  his  tail  and,  foaming 
with  rage,  makes  ready  for  the  fray. 

Achilles  rushes  toward  the  city  as  a  victorious  race- 
horse dashes  over  the  plain  (X,  22).  He  flashes  in 
the  gleam  of  his  bronze  armor  (X,  26)  as  Orion,  the 
most  brilliant  among  the  stars  of  night.  As  the  ser- 
pent which  has  sated  itself  upon  the  poisonous  herbs 
coils  about  its  hole  and  awaits  the  approaching  man 


THE   NATIONAL   EPIC  35 

(X,  93),  SO  Hector  awaits  his  opponent  at  the  Scaean 
gate.  When  Achilles  approaches,  Hector  trembles 
and  flees;  Achilles  rushes  after  him,  like  the  mountain 
hawk  after  the  fleeing  doves  (X,  139). 

As  horses  crowned  with  victory  bend  their  course 
around  the  goal  (X,  162),  so  the  heroes  three  times 
encircle  Priam's  wall.  As  the  hound  pursues  the 
young  stag  startled  from  its  covert,  and  as  often  as 
it  tries  to  conceal  itself  rouses  it  up  (X,  189),  so 
Achilles  drives  the  fleeing  Hector  aside  into  the  fleld 
again  when  he  attempts  to  approach  the  city  walls. 
As  in  a  dream  one  cannot  overtake  a  fleeing  form 
(X,  199),  and  the  other  cannot  escape,  so  Achilles  can- 
not reach  Hector,  and  Hector  cannot  escape  his  pur- 
suer. Finally  Hector  craves  the  assurance  that  the 
body  of  whoever  is  slain  maybe  inviolate,  but  Achilles 
answers  (X,  262)  that  as  no  compact  is  possible  between 
men  and  lions,  and  as  wolves  and  lambs  will  never  be- 
come reconciled  to  each  other,  so  there  can  be  no 
pledge  between  them. 

In  this  manner  the  action  of  the  Iliad  is  clearly  in- 
dicated and  rendered  conspicuous  in  all  its  chief  points 
by  more  than  a  hundred  similes  which  are  found  dis- 
tributed throughout  the  poem. 

The  Odyssey  has  thirty-four  similes.  As  in  the  Ni- 
belungenlied  Kriemhild's  sad  fate  and  the  issue  of 
thinofs  in  the  distant  future  are  set  forth  bv  her  dream, 
so  the  first  simile  in  the  Odyssey  gives  in  picturesque 
completeness  the  outline  of  the  incidents  at  Ithaca  and 
the  prophecy  of  their  outcome.  "As  when  in  the  lair 
of  the  lion  a  hind  prepares  a  bed  for  her  young  the  lion 
brings  sudden  destruction  to  all  (S,  333-34:0),  so  Odys- 
seus, returning  home,  will  bring  death  upon  the  suit- 


36  HOMERIC   LIFE 


ors."  It  is  striking  how  similes  almost  everywhere 
stand  iu  the  closest  connection  with  the  action.  The 
significant  moments  of  Odysseus's  departure  from  Ca- 
lypso and  his  reception  by  Nausicaa  are  presented  in 
nine  similes. 

Hermes  hastens  over  the  waves  like  the  gull  diving 
after  fish  (e,  51-54). 

When  Poseidon  unchains  the  storm,  which  defies  all 
description,  the  poet  again  supplies  pictures  to  assist 
the  imagination.  As  the  north  wind  scatters  the 
thistledown  over  the  field,  so  the  tempest  tosses  about 
the  rudderless  wreck  (e,  328-332).  As  the  storm  scat- 
ters a  heap  of  chaff,  so  the  hurricane  scatters  the  tim- 
bers of  the  ship  (e,  368-370). 

The  poet  uses  simile  especially  to  give  full  expres- 
sion to  the  feelings.  As  children  rejoice  when  their 
father  begins  to  recover  from  a  severe  illness,  so  is 
Odysseus  happy  when  he  beholds  the  land  after  the 
terrors  of  the  storm  (e,  394—398).  As  many  little 
pebbles  hang  to  the  suckers  of  the  polyp,  so  the  pieces 
of  skin  flayed  from  his  hand  cleave  to  the  rocks  (e, 
432-435).  The  rescued  Odysseus  barrows  under  the 
bush  deep  in  the  dry  leaves,  just  as  a  farmer  keeps 
alive  in  ashes  the  spark  of  the  fii"el)rand  (e,  488-491). 

Again  the  poet  makes  use  of  simile  in  order  to  por- 
tray effectively  the  impression  made  by  personal  ap- 
pearance. As  Artemis  surpasses  in  stature  and  noble 
bearing  the  beautiful  mountain  nymphs  in  her  train, 
so  is  Nausicaa  distinguished  among  her  attendants  (^, 
102-107).  As  the  hungry  lion  seeking  his  prey  in 
wind  and  storm  dares  to  approach  a  guarded  fold,  so 
necessity  drives  Odysseus  to  address  Nausicaa  (^,  130- 
135).     Slender  as  the  sacred  palm  which  Odysseus 


THE  NATIONAL  EPIC  37 

once  saw  and  admired  in  Delos,  the  maiden  stood  1)6- 
fore  him  woudrously  beautiful  {C  166-169).  As  the 
goldsmith  by  o:ilding  lends  a  charmino;  brilliancy  to  a 
silv^er  ornament,  so  Athena  had  spread  over  the 
shoulders  of  Odysseus  dazzling  grace  (^,  232-235). 


Fig.  2.    Odysseus  PitESENTiNa  Cup  to  Polyphemus 

The  sobbing  of  Odysseus  is  like  the  wail  of  a  capti\'e 
woman  {0,  523-531).  The  effort  to  blind  the  eye  of 
Cyclops  is  as  the  strenuous  lal)or  of  the  shipbuilder 
and  his  companions  at  the  drill  (c,  383-388).  The 
enchanted  wild  beasts  of  Circe  are  compared  to  the 
dogs  which  the  master  feeds  (k,  216-219).  The 
calves  skipping  with  joy  about  the  cows  as  they  return 
to  their  stall  give  a  picture  of  the  thronging  of  Odys- 
seus's  companions  around  him  on  his  return  (  k,  410- 


38  HOMERIC  LIFE 


417).  His  companions  seized  by  Scylla  are  compared 
to  the  fish  floundering  at  the  end  of  the  rod  {/j.,  251-255). 
The  following  simile  beautifully  portrays  not  only 
the  longing,  which  is  the  real  point  of  comparison, 
but  also  the  rest  which,  after  long  suffering,  will  final- 
ly fall  to  the  lot  of  the  hero:  As  the  field  laborer 
after  the  day's  toil  longs  for  the  setting  of  the  sun  in 
order  to  return  home  to  his  evening  meal,  and  his 
knees  totter  as  he  plods  along,  so  Odysseus  yearns 
for  the  sunset  (v,  31-35). 

It  seems  to  us  that  we  see  the  ship  advancing  when 
it  is  said  that  as  horses,  lightly  lifting  their  feet, 
hurry  over  the  plain,  so  the  ship,  lightly  rearing  its 
stern  over  the  level  surface  of  the  sea,  moves  onward 
and  the  waves  swish  around  the  keel  (v,  81-85). 

The  poet  is  impelled  to  paint  vividly  the  emotions 
of  the  actors.     Eumaeus  receives  Telemachus  as  a 
father  would  receive  his  son  (tt,  17-21).     Odysseus 
and  Telemachus  hang  in  each  other's  embrace  and 
sob,  as  sea  eagles  and  vultures  scream  when  deprived 
of  their  young  (tt,  216-222).     Eumaeus  listens  to  the 
words  of  Odysseus  as  an  audience  to  the  recital  of  a 
singer  (p,  518-521 ).     As  the  melting  snow  disappears, 
so  beneath  her  tears  fades  the  color  from  the  cheeks 
of  Penelope  (t,  205-208).     Heavy  thoughts  trouble 
Penelope's  heart,  for  she  hesitates  whether  to  remain 
with  Telemachus  or  to  follow  one  of  the  suitors,  as 
the  sorrowing  nightingale  complains  to  the  night  of 
her  woes  in   ever-changing  melodies   (t,  518-524). 
The  heart  of  Odysseus  rages  with  anger  at  the  shame- 
ful deeds  of  the  suitors  as  a  dog,  protecting  her  young, 
barks  wildly  at  the  stranger  (v,  14-17).     Penelope, 
in  her  sorrow,  wishes  herself  out  of  the  world,  just 


THE   NATIONAL  EPIC  39 

as  the  storm   wind,  according  to  tradition,  carried 
away  the  daughters  of  Pandarus  (u,  60-79). 

The  final  revenge  is  very  impressively  portrayed. 
Odysseus  stretches  the  cord  of  the  bow  as  the  player 
does  the  lyre  string.  It  gives  forth  a  sound  as  beau- 
tiful as  the  clear  voice  of  the  swallow  {<f>,  405-410). 
While  the  conflict  rages  in  the  hall,  and  Athena 
holds  aloft  her  aegis,  the  suitors  flee  like  oxen  pur- 
sued by  the  gadfly.  As  hawks  that  pounce  upon  a 
flock  of  birds  settling  upon  the  plain,  so  Odysseus 
and  his  loyal  followers  slay  their  wretched  victims 
(x>  299-307).  All  the  suitors  lie  crowded  together 
in  blood  and  dust,  like  fish  which  have  been  drawn 
up  out  of  the  sea  in  a  large  net  and  emptied  on  the 
sand  (x,  383-390).  All  dabbled  with  gore,  Odysseus 
appears  to  Eurycleia  like  a  lion  who  has  sated  him- 
self upon  an  ox,  and  drips  with  blood,  while  his 
eyes  roll  frightfully  (x,  401-406).  The  act  of  re- 
venge closes  with  the  death  of  the  faithless  maid- 
servants, who  end  their  lives  like  thrushes  in  the 
snares  (x,  468-473).  The  boundless  joy  of  the  reu- 
nited pair  is  like  that  of  the  shipwrecked  who  have 
saved  their  lives  by  swimming  to  the  shore  («/',  233- 
240).  The  souls  of  the  suitors  conducted  by  Her- 
mes to  the  lower  world  are  compared  to  bats  flutter- 
ing hither  and  thither  in  the  darkness  (o>,  6-10). 

The  double  relation  of  the  simile  to  the  significant 
turn  of  the  action  and  to  the  inmost  feeling  of  the 
person,  as  we  have  repeatedly  seen  above,  renders 
clear  to  us  the  excellent  imitation  of  the  Homeric 
style  of  Hermann  und  Dorothea  in  the  passage  where 
Hermann  seeks  Dorothea  in  marriage  and  comes  upon 
her  at  the  fountain: 


40  HOMERIC  LIFE 


As  the  man  on  a  journey,  who,  just  at  the  moment  of  sunset, 
Fixes  his  gaze  once  more  on  the  rapidly  vanishing  planet. 
Then  on  the  side  of  the  rocks  and  in  the  dark  thicket  still  sees  he 
Hov'ring  its  image;  wherever  he  turns  his  looks,  on  in  front  still 
Runs  it,  and  glitters  and  wavers  before  him  in  colors  all  splen- 
did, 
So  before  Hermann's  eyes  did  the  beautiful  form  of  the  maiden 
Softly  move,  and  appeared  to  follow  the  path  through  the 
cornfields.  — Borvrmg's  Translation. 

11.  Ornamental  Epithets.  Ornamental  epithets  {epi- 
theta  ornantia)  which  might  be  called  characteristic, 
;)r,  still  better,  graphic,  serve  the  same  purpose  as 
similes — namely,  to  stimulate  our  imagination  and  to 
make  vivid  the  picture.  It  is  at  the  same  time  char- 
acteristic and  graphic  when  we  hear  the  herald  de- 
scribed as  "loud-proclaiming;"  the  horses,  "beauti- 
ful-maned;"  the  earth,  "fruit-producing;"  and  the 
sea,  "loud -roaring."  Such  expressions  force  our 
imagination  to  contemplate  all  objects  with  special 
reference  to  their  dominant  characteristics.^  We 
here  cite  a  limited  number  of  epithets,  examples  of 
which  occur  on  every  page:  "Graciously  beaming 
eyes,"  the  " sih'^er-shining  veil,"  the  "silver-colored 
linen,"  the  "tawny  hero,  Menelaiis,"  the  "man-hon- 
oring battleiield,"  "plume- waving  Hector,"  the 
"long- shadowing  lance,"  "garment -trailing  wom- 
en," "beautiful -rimmed  ships,"  "sea -sailing  ves- 
sels," the  "venerable  mother,"  the  "virtuous  wife," 
"winged  words." 

12.  Meter.     Every  syllable  is  distinguished  by  three 
characteristics: 

( 1 )  The  stress  of  tone,  which  is  dependent  upon  the 
force  with  which  the  breath  is  expelled. 

1  Sevmour,  Homeric  Language  and  Verse,  pp.  11-13. 


THE   NATIONAL   EPIO  41 

(2)  The  pitch  of  tone,  which  is  conditioned  upon 
the  vibrations  of  the  vocal  chords  and  determines  the 
character  of  the  vowel. 

(3)  The  duration  of  tone,  which  we  call  quantity. 
In  English  our  accent  is  mainly  the  stress  accent, 

and  it  becomes  the  controlling  factor  in  our  versifica- 
tion— e.  g. : 

*'L6t  me  essdy,  O  Muse!  to  follow  the  wdnderer's  footsteps." 

{Longfelloiv' s  Evangeline.) 

The  Greek  accent  marks  do  not  indicate  the  stress 
accent,  but  the  pitch  or  musical  accent;  for  example, 
of  the  two  vowels  e  and  o^  the  former  is  of  the  higher 
pitch.  This  old  law  goes  back  to  the  time  of  our 
mother-speech,  the  Indo-European,  where  the  relation 
between  the  stress  accent  and  pitch  accent  was  closer. 
Examples  of  pitch  accent  we  see  in  such  variations  of 
vowels  as  appear  in  the  Greek  -rreTOfmi.  and  TroTao/uai  and 
in  the  English  hhid  and  hcoid. 

Greek  versification  is  dependent  upon  the  duration 
of  tone.  One  short  syllable  is  the  unit  of  measure — 
one  time  (Latin  mora).  This  corresponds  to  one 
eighth  note  in  music.  A  long  syllable  is  equivalent  to 
two  short  syllables;  hence  it  corresponds  to  one  quar- 
ter note.  Every  foot  contains  one  syllable  which  has 
the  stress  or  ictus  upon  it.  Such  a  syllable  is  desig- 
nated, in  technical  language,  the  arsis.^  while  the  rest 
of  the  foot  is  called  the  fhesis\  This  nomenclature  is 
directly  opposite  to  that  of  the  Greek,  since  thesis 
denoted  the  putting  down  of  the  foot,  which  of  course 
was  simultaneous  with  the  ictus,  and  the  arsis  the 
raising  of  the  foot.  The  confusion  of  terms  was  due 
to  Roman  writers,  who  applied  a7\HS  to  the  raising  of 
the  voice  and  thesis  to  its  lowering. 


42  HOMERIC  LIFE 


Let  the  student  remember  that  in  scanning  he  is 
not  reading  the  Greek  with  reference  to  stress  accent, 
as  he  reads  his  English  poetry,  but  with  reference  to 
duration  of  tone  (quantity),  the  height  of  tone  (ac- 
cent), and  the  stress  of  tone  (ictus). 

The  meter  of  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey  is  dactylic 
hexameter,  consisting  of  six  dactyls  (— w^),  the  last 
of  which  is  incomplete  and  resembles  a  trochee.  The 
original  form  of  this  heroic  hexameter,  as  it  is  also 
called,  is  as  follows: 

Two  short  syllables  can  be  contracted  into  one  long 
syllable  in  every  foot  except  the  fifth,  which  usually 
remains  a  pure  dactyl.  Hence  the  dactyl  may  be  re- 
placed by  a  spondee: 

This  hexameter  can  be  divided  by  a  caesura  into  two 
parts: 


Or  into  three  parts  by  two  caesurae: 


The  varied  structure  of  the  verse  and  the  different 
ways  in  which  single  words  are  distributed  into  feet 
bring  such  a  rich  variation  into  the  hexameter  that 
the  rhythm  of  the  Homeric  poems  never  becomes  mo- 
notonous, although  the  same  verse  is  repeated  12,110 
times  in  the  Odyssey  and  15,693  times  in  the  Iliad. 


RELIGIOK 

THE  HOMERIC  DIVINITIES 

13.  Origin  of  Religious  Conceptions.  The  oldest  form 
of  the  Greek  religion  was  similar  to  the  nature-wor- 
ship of  the  other  Indo-European  races. ^  Under  the 
title  of  Zeus  (Indo-European  dieus,  Sanskrit 
dycius^  Latin  Ju-pUer)  the  Greeks  worshiped  the 
bright  sky  from  which  all  life,  all  blessings  come. 
Apollo,  his  son,  signified  the  bright  ray  of  light 
which  now  invigorates,  now  consumes  with  heat. 
Athena  is  the  blue  vault  of  heaven  shining  serenely 
out  of  the  clouds.  We  still  recognize  this  original 
trinity  in  the  solemn  invocation:  "O  Father  Zeus, 
Athena,  and  Apollo!"  The  imagination  exalted  all 
natural  phenomena  to  the  position  of  divine  beings 
who  were  children  of  the  sky-father.  The  storm 
wind  driving  the  clouds  became  the  messenger  of  the 
gods,  Hermes.  The  moon  was  Apollo's  twin  sister, 
Artemis.  The  morning  and  evening  stars  became 
the  two  children  of  Zeus,  Castor  and  Pollux.  The 
sky  of  night,  ablaze  with  brilliant  stars,  was  regard- 
ed as  the  majestic  consort  of  the  king  of  gods.  The 
divinities  were  thought  to  be  enthroned  upon  the 
heavenly  Mount  Olympus.  Primitive  traditions  told 
of  various  prehistoric  transforniations  of  the  world, 
wrought  by  earthquakes  and  floods.    The  religious  im- 


1  Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology, 

20. 

(43) 


44  HOMERIC   LIFE 


agination  created  a  pre-Olympic  kingdom  of  Cronus, 
who  was  a  personitication  of  endless  time,^  The 
Titans  likewise  were  divinities  of  this  period.  The 
upheavals  of  the  earth  were  conceived  as  battles  of 
the  primitive  gods  with  the  younger  Zeus.     Cronus 


Fig.  3.    Olympian  Zeus 

(From  a  coin  of  Elis.) 

and  his  wife  Rhea,  deprived  of  their  sovereignty, 
were  consigned  to  Tartarus,  which  lies  as  far  be- 
neath the  world  as  heaven  is  above  it.  They  were 
the  parents  of  Zeus,  Hera,  Demeter,  Poseidon,  god 
of  the  sea,  and  Hades,  god  of  the  lower  world. 
Among  the  pre-Olympic  divinities  were  numbered  the 
earth  (Gaia),  the  sun  (Helios),  Atlas,  the  father  of 
Calypso,  Themis  (justice),  and  the  Erinyes,  the  aveng- 
ers of  wrong. 

Cronidae 

14.  Zeus,  dwelling  in  the  sky,  the  loud  thunderer, 
rejoicing  in  the  lightning,  brightly  shining,  the  cloud- 

^So  Weissenborn.  Rather  was  Cronus  the  sun  god,  who 
ripened  the  harvest  and  caused  vegetation  to  wither;  ef.  Har- 
rington and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology,  p.  21. 


Fig.  4.    Zeus  Otricoi.i 

(Rome,  Vatican.) 

(45) 


46  HOMERIC  LIFE 


gatherer,  cloud-wrapped,  the  bearer  of  the  aegis 
(storm  shield),  is  the  master  of  the  world,  the  father 
of  men  and  gods,  the  exalted  ruler,  the  supreme  coun- 
selor, the  omnipotent,  the  omniscient.  As  lord,  he  is 
the  protector  of  all  human  order,  of  government,  of 
laws,  of  the  oath,  and  of  hospitality.  He  is  the  kind 
guardian  of  Zeus-born  kings.  As  god  of  the  family, 
he  receives  his  sacrifice  upon  the  household  altar.  As 
lord  of  hospitality,  he  is  the  special  protector  of  the 
stranger  and  the  beggar,  of  the  poor  and  wretched 
(^,  207).  Zeus  is  the  source  of  all  revelation.  His 
primitive  oracle  is  at  Dodona,  in  Epirus.  He  loves 
to  sit  upon  Gargarus,  the  highest  peak  of  Mount  Ida; 
his  abode  is  upon  Olympus,  the  mountain  of  the 
gods.  The  eagle  circling  high  in  air  is  sacred  to 
him.^ 

15.  Hera  is  really  the  glorious  sky  lighted  with  stars 
by  night;  therefore  the  peacock,  with  his  motley  tail, 
is  sacred  to  her.  As  queen  of  heaven  she  is  the  coun- 
terpart of  Zeus,  but  in  certain  respects  she  is  con- 
trasted with  him.  She  was  conceived  of  as  a  majes- 
tic tigure,  with  large  features,  large  eyes,  of  dazzling 
whiteness;  therefore  she  is  the  exalted,  the  honored 
goddess,  the  glorious  and  adorable  wife  of  Zeus,  the 
golden-throned,  beautiful-haired,  ox-eyed  (majestic- 
looking)  Hera.  She  is  the  guardian  of  marriage;^ 
hence  her  hatred  of  the  woman-stealer,  Paris,  and  his 
nation.  Her  favorite  cities  are  Argos,  Sparta,  and 
Mycenae  (A,  51). 

16.  Demeter  is  the  personification  of  the  fruit-bear- 

'  Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology, 
33-38.     2  Ibid,  56. 


THE   HOMERIC  DIVINITIES  47 

ing  earth  ;^  therefore  Homer  calls' the  grain  the  fruit 
of  Demeter.  She  is  the  fair  one  of  beautiful  locks. 
Her  daughter  by  Zeus  is  Persephone,  the  goddess  of 
the  lower  world.  The  latter's  abduction  by  Hades, 
the  wandering  of  the  mother  over  the  earth  in  search 
of  her  daughter,  her  abode  in  Eleusis,  and  the  found- 
ing of  the  Eleusinian  mysteries,  the  secret  cult  of 
Demeter,  all  belong  to  later  tradition. 

17.  Hades  appears  in  Homer  as  Aides  and  Aidoneus 
— /.  e.,  the  invisible.  He  is  lord  of  the  underworld, 
the  mighty  guardian  of  the  gate  (X,  277),  the  inex- 
orable, the  immovable,  the  hated  god.  He  is  re- 
nowned for  his  steeds,  apparently  because,  according 
to  earlier  representation,  he  carried  away  the  souls 
of  the  departed  in  his  chariot.  The  wife  of  Hades  is 
Persephone,  the  death  bringer,  the  daughter  of  Zeus 
and  Demeter,  the  awful,  fearful,  exalted  goddess. 
The  Erinyes,  the  avenging  divinities,^  stand  in  the 
service  of  the  gods  of  the  lower  world  to  fulHll  the 
curse  upon  the  ofl'ender.  They  uphold  the  authority 
of  the  elder  brother  over  the  younger;  they  punish  the 
perjurer  (T,  260)  and  the  violator  of  the  laws  of  hos- 
pitality; even  the  gods  are  subject  to  their  vengeance. 
In  a  mysterious  manner  they  rove  through  the  dark- 
ness, are  inexorable,  and  visit  the  wrong-doer  with 
unerring  certainty. 

18.  Poseidon,  the  god  of  the  sea,  being  the  younger 
son  of  Cronus,  was  obliged  to  relinquish  to  his  elder 
brother,  Zeus,  the  lordship  of  the  world.  He  has  his 
palace  in  the  depths  of  the  sea,  near  Aegae,  in  Achaia. 

^  Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Kouian  Mythology, 
94.    2  Ibid.,  41. 


48  HOMERIC  LIFE 


Whenever  in  his  golden  chariot,  drawn  by  golden 
steeds,  he  drives  over  the  sea  (N,  21),  clad  in  his 
golden  garments,  flourishing  his  golden  whip,  the 
waves  part  of  their  own  accord,  so  that  the  axles  are 
not  wet,  and  the  monsters  of  the  deep  dance  with  joy 
around  their  lord.  He  is  called  the  widely  ruling, 
the  earth-encompassing,  black-locked  god,  the  earth 
shaker,  who  stirs  the  sea  with  his  trident  (e,  292),  and 
makes  the  earth  heave  (Y,  57).  Ajax,  the  son  of  Oi- 
leus,  who,  on  his  way  home  after  the  sack  of  Troy, 
escaped  shipwreck  upon  the  Gyraean  cliffs  on  Euboea, 
was  destroyed  by  him  because  he  had  boasted  that  he 
would  return  in  spite  of  the  gods  (8,  500).  Poseidon, 
in  company  with  Apollo,  is  said  to  have  served  the 
Trojan  king,  Laomedon,  in  the  construction  of  his 
wall;  being  cheated  of  his  reward,  he  bears  a  grudge 
against  all  the  Trojans,  with  the  exception  of  Aeneas 
($,  444).  The  horse  was  sacred  to  Poseidon  since  the 
leaping  waves  were  compared  to  horses.'  The  land 
of  the  Phaeacians,  especially,  was  called  the  place  of 
his  worship,  and  here  in  the  marketplace  a  sanctuary 
was  reared  in  his  honor  (C,  266).  The  Cyclops  Poly- 
phemus was  Poseidon's  son,  and  Chary bdis,  the 
frightful,  unconquerable  monster  of  the  deep  (/x,  118), 
was  his  daughter.  Other  sea-divinities  are:  Am- 
phitrite,  the  beautiful  blue-eyed  daughter  of  the 
ocean,  clearly  a  personification  of  the  sea  itself,  con- 
sequently described  as  loud-groaning  (yu.,  97);  Leuco- 
thea,  who  had  been  changed  into  a  sea  goddess,  for- 
merly being  Ino,  the  daughter  of  Cadmus  (e,  334); 

*  Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology, 
74. 


THE   HOMERIC  DIVINITIES  49 


Proteus,  tho  infallible  old  man  of  the  sea,  dwelling 
upon  I'huios,  an  island  lying  off  Egypt  (S,  385, )  who 
is  the  mighty,  godlike  servant  of  Poseidon,  knows  all 
the  depths  of  the  sea,  and  can  change  himself  into 
various  forms  of  life,  and  even  into  water  and  fire; 
Nereus,  the  father  of  the  Nereids,  of  whom  thirty- 
three  are  mentioned  (2,  37).  Among  these  Nereids  is 
Thetis,  the  spouse  of  Peleus  and  mother  of  Achilles. 
She  is  the  daughter  of  the  old  man  of  the  sea,  and  her 
epithets  are  silver-footed,  beautiful-haired.  She  con- 
cealetl  Dionysus  in  her  grotto  when  he  fled  before 
Lycurgus  (Z,  132),  and  she  received  Hephaestus,  who, 
on  account  of  his  ugliness,  was  thrown  down  by  his 
mother  Hera  from  Olympus  (2,  395).  When  Posei- 
don, Hera,  and  Athena  wished  to  put  Zeus  in  chains 
(A,  396),  Thetis  called  upon  the  giant  Aegaeou  for 
help. 

Other  Olympic  Gods:  Children  of  Zeus 

19.  Apollo,  the  son  of  Zeus  and  Leto,  was  born  at 
Delos;  his  altar  on  that  island  is  mentioned  in  ^,  102. 
He  is  the  personification  of  the  beaming  sunlight,' 
Phoebus  signifying  the  shining  one,  and  Apollo  the 
archer.  He  is  called  the  light-born,  the  fire  darter, 
the  god  with  the  silver  bow,  the  far-worker,  and  the 
possessor  of  the  famous  bow.  As  god  of  light,  he  re- 
veals the  future  to  men  through  prophecy.  His  fa- 
mous oracle  is  rocky  Pytho  {0,  80)  afterwards  known 
as  Delphi,  rich  in  votive  off'erings;  from  him  Calchas 
and   Amphiaraiis   received   their   gift   of   prophecy 

Ularriugtou  aud  Tolman.  Greek  and  Kornau  Mythology, 
49. 

4 


50  HOMEEIC   LIFE 


(o,  244).  Since  the  light  of  the  soul  is  revealed  in  po- 
etry, Apollo  is  also  called  the  god  of  song  (^,  488),  and 
in  his  service  are  the  Muses,  who  inspire  the  poet. 
The  swift  hawk  is  sacred  to  him  (o,  525).  He  also 
sends  gentle  death;  whoever  dies  suddenly  is  smitten 
by  his  arrow.  Helios,  the  sun-god,  is  not  identical 
with  Apollo,  but,  as  a  Titan,  is  numbered  among  the 
primitive  divinities.  He  is  called  the  god  who  wan- 
ders in  mid-air,  and  is  the  personification  of  the  sun 
itself. 

20.  Artemis  (the  moonlight),^  the  daughter  of  Zeus 
and  Leto,  is  Apollo's  twin  sister.  When  the  cool 
night  wind,  driving  the  clouds  across  the  face  of  the 
moon,  rustles  through  the  forest,  Artemis  is  engaged 
in  the  hunt  with  the  nymphs  on  the  wooded  mountain 
(^,  102).  She  is  the  arrow -hurling,  well-aiming, 
clamorous  goddess  of  the  chase  and  mistress  of  the 
game.  On  account  of  the  brilliancy  of  the  moon- 
light she  is  called  the  golden-throned  goddess,  adorned 
with  beautiful  head-gear,  driving  her  steeds  with 
golden  reins.  She  is  the  goddess  who  brings  death 
to  women. 

21.  Pallas  Athena  the  Trito-born,  sprung  from  the 
head  of  Zeus,  is  the  blue  sky;^  therefore  she  is  called 
the  bright-eyed  daughter  of  aegis-bearing  Zeus.  She 
herself,  like  Apollo,  carries  the  storm  shield,  or  aegis. 
From  an  intellectual  standpoint  she  is  the  embodiment 
of  divine  wisdom,  who  brings  help  and  victory  in  times 
of  danger.  Consequently  she  is  the  good-counseling 
protectress  of  shrewd  Odysseus  and  discreet  Telema- 

^  Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology, 
57.     2  Ibid.,  35. 


THE    HOMERIC   DIVINITIES  51 

chus;  she  gives  prudent  udvice  to  Achilles  (A,  VJ4r). 
In  war  she  always  reveals  herself  as  a  goddess  who 
incites  to  battle,  and  who,  couil)ining  prudence  with 
valor,  leads  to  victory.  The  wise  hero,  Dionicdes,  is 
under  her  jn-otection  (E).  She  is  the  famous  high- 
spirited  goddess,  intianiiug  the  people,  the  hringer  of 
booty,  and  the  protectress  of  cities.  In  contrast  to 
her,  Ares  personifies  wild,  clamorous  warfare.^  She 
is  depicted  as  a  tall,  warlike  deity,  with  helmet,  lance, 
and  aegis. 

22.  Ares,  the  son  of  Zeus  and  Hera,  is  the  god  of 
fierce  battle;  the  fier}^,  shrieking,  storming  destroyer 
of  cities,  dripping  with  l)l()()d,  insatiate  in  battle, 
slayer  of  men.  When  Diomedes,  with  the  help  of 
Athena,  wounds  him  in  the  thigh  (E,  856),  he  shrieks 
like  nine  or  ten  thousand  men;  and  when  in  the  con- 
flict between  the  gods  {^,  407)  he  is  struck  in  the  neck 
with  a  large  stone  by  Athena,  falling  forward  at  full 
length,  he  covers  seven  roods  of  land.  Zeus  himself 
calls  him  the  hated  god.  His  favorite  dwelling  place 
is  among  the  barbarous  tribes  of  the  north  (N,  801). 
In  his  train  follows  the  l)l()odthirsty  Enyo;  therefore 
he  himself  is  called  Knyalios  (murderer).  The  alle- 
gorical figures,  Fear,  Terrf)r,  Strife,  Tumult,  and 
Death,  attend  him  constantly.'^ 

23.  Aphrodite,  the  daughter  of  Zeus  and  Dione,  is 
the  wife  of  Hephaestus,  and  is  the  goddess  of  beauty 
and  love.  On  account  of  her  ])eauty  she  is  called  the 
golden-beaming,  graciously  j^miling  goddess,  adorned 
with   beautiful  headband.      She   presents  men  and 

^ Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  aud  Roman  Mythology, 
116.      2 Ibid.,  lie. 


52  HOMEEIC   LIFE 


women  with  her  gifts,  which  bring  happiness  in  mar- 
riage. But  in  mm'derous  battle  she  is  a  powerless 
goddess/  who  is  actually  seized  by  Diomedes  and 
wounded  in  the  hand  (E,  336);  she  is  struck  to  the 
ground  by  Pallas  Athena  in  the  conflict  between  the 
gods,  when  she  wished  to  bear  away  the  wounded 
Ares  ($,425). 

24.  Hephaestus,  the  son  of  Zeus  and  Hera,  on  account 
of  his  ugliness,  was  thrown  by  his  mother  from  Olym- 
pus, and  was  nurtured  by  the  sea  goddesses  Eurynome 
and  Thetis.  Although  of  powerful  frame  and  broad- 
shouldered,  yet  as  a  result  of  that  fall  he  had  such 
weak  and  crooked  legs  that  he  moved  about  with  great 
difficulty.  As  god  of  the  subterranean  fire,'-*  he  is  the 
smith  who  made  the  divine  mansions  on  Olympus 
(A,  607),  the  scepter  of  Agamemnon  (B,  100),  the 
carved  ornaments  in  the  palace  of  Alcinoiis  {rj,  91), 
and  the  seats  for  the  gods  (H,  238).  At  the  request 
of  Thetis  he  forged  new  armor  for  Achilles.  He  is 
called  artistic,  inventive,  strong-armed,  but  also  the 
crooked-legged,  hobbling  god,  who  puffs  as  he  moves 
about. 

25.  Hermes,  the  son  of  Zeus  and  Maia,  born  upon 
the  Arcadian  mountain  Cyllene,  is  the  messenger  of 
the  gods.  He  accompanies  the  departed  to  the  under- 
world.^ Hence  men,  when  they  prepare  for  bed,  pour 
to  him  the  last  libation.  As  dispenser  of  blessings 
and  preserver,  he  protects  Odysseus  against  the  charms 
of  Circe  by  means  of  the  herb  moJi/  {k,  302),  and  he 
accompanies  Priam  secretly  by  night  to  the  tent  of 

^Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Roman  Mythology, 
105.     siijid,,  32,  33.     3  Ibid.,  48. 


THE   HOMERIC   DIVINITIES  53 

Achilles  (O),  He  is  called  the  close-observing,  ready 
messeno^er  of  heaven,  and  the  god  with  the  golden 
wand.  He  is  represented  as  a  very  slender  youth, 
whose  l)card  is  just  beginning  to  sprout;  his  shoes 
and  hat  are  furnished  with  wings. 

Dionysus,  in  Homer,  is  not  yet  worshiped  as  a 
god. 

With  the  twelve  deities  mentioned  above  is  asso- 
ciated a  set  of  minor  divinities:  Hebe,  the  goddess  of 
eternal  youth,  serves  as  cupbearer;  Iris  (the  rain- 
bow) is  the  wind-swift  messenger;  Themis  calls  the 
immortals  to  the  assembly;  Paeon  is  the  physician  of 
the  gods;  the  JVIuses,  who  inspire  the  poet,  sing  to 
the  accompaniment  of  Apollo's  lyre;  the  Horae  (sea- 
sons)^ dissipate  the  clouds  before  the  gate  of  heaven 
whenever  a  god  drives  forth  in  his  golden  chariot; 
the  early-born,  rosy-lingered  Eos  (the  red  glow  of 
morning)  leads  forth  the  day. 

Worship 
26.  Relation  of  Man  to  Deity.  Zeus  and  the  other 
gods  care  for  the  pious  and  the  just.  The  divini- 
ties give  express  warning  against  plots  (a,  37).  If 
through  pride  men  become  insolent  or  unjust,  mis- 
fortune comes  as  a  punishment  (a,  43),  since  right 
must  prevail.  But  not  every  unjust  act  is  to  be 
wholly  charged  against  a  man  as  his  own  guilt,  for 
often  fate  and  infatuation  work  together  to  fill  (ill 
the  divine  plans  (T,  1(53;  T,  136).  Prayer  is  able  to 
turn  aside  the  vengeance  of  the  gods  (I,  502).     Mor- 


1  HarriDgton  and  Tolman,  Greek  aqd  Roman  Mythology, 
115. 


54 


HOMERIC    LIFE 


tals  are  constantly  in  need  of  help  from  heaven  (y,  48), 
and  they  do  well  to  regulate  their  lives  accordino^  to 
the  divine  purpose.  The  crods  gladly  help  the  pious 
when  it  is  in  accord  with  the  will  of  fate. 

27.  Sacrifice  and  Prayer.^  Men  begin  all  their  un- 
dertakings with  sacrifice  and  prayer.  At  every  meal 
there  is  an  offering;  sacrifice  precedes 
every  journey  (/?,  432);  and  before  re- 
tiring a  tinal  libation  is  poured  to  Her- 
mes (»7,  137).  Divine  support  and  pro- 
tection are  implored  through  prayer 
and  offering.  It  is  customary  to  re- 
mind the  god  of  the  many  sacrifices 
which  the  worshiper  has  offered  to  him 
in  the  past.  By  sacrifice  men  make 
atonement  for  sin,  or  give  thanks  for 
help  and  merciful  deliverance  from 
danger. 

Offerings  include  burnt  offerings, 
drink  offerings,  and  other  gifts.  Be- 
fore prayer  and  sacrifice  the  hands  are 
cleansed  wdth  water.  The  hands  are 
raised  toward  the  sky  when  prayer  is 
offered  to  the  heavenly  deities;  they 
are  stretched  out  when  the  divinities  of  the  sea  are 
entreated;  and  they  are  extended  downward  in  sup- 
plicating the  gods  of  the  lower  world.  The  offer- 
ing of  animals  is  considered  a  meal  of  which  the 
gods  partake.  The  animal  to  be  offered  must  be  un- 
blemished.    White  ones  are  offered  to  the  heaven- 


FiG.  5.    The 
Pkaying  Boy 

(Berlin.) 


^Harrington  and  Tolman,  Greek  and  Koman  Mythology, 
15-18. 


THE   HOMERIC   DIVINITIES  55 

\y  divinities,  black  ones  to  divinities  of  the  lower 
world;  male  animals  are  sacrificed  to  gods,  female 
victims  to  goddesses.  Old  men  perform  the  rite  (A, 
457;  $■,  420).  On  offering  the  sacrifice  (hecatomb) 
the  horns  of  the  bidl  were  gilded  (y,  487).  First,  grains 
of  barley  were  sprinkled  upon  the  victim,  and  hair  was 
cut  from  its  head  and  thrown  into  the  tire.  After  the 
slaughter,  slices  from  the  thigh  were  rolled  in  doable 
layers  of  fat,  and  other  raw  pieces  taken  from  va- 
rious parts  of  the  animal  were  placed  upon  these  as  a 
sign  that  the  whole  animal  was  offered  to  the  gods. 
These  portions  of  flesh  were  binned,  with  libations, 
upon  the  altar,  that  the  gods  might  enjoy  the  smoke 
curling  ujjward  from  the  fat.  In  the  meanwhile, 
boys  stirred  the  fire  w  ith  tive-prongcd  forks.  Every 
sacrifice  was  concluded  with  a  feast,  at  the  beginning 
of  which  the  entrails,  heart,  liver,  and  lungs  were 
consumed.  Then  the  rest  of  the  flesh  was  cut  into 
small  pieces,  and  roasted  on  spits.  After  the  repast, 
pages  mixed  drink  in  the  bowls  and  tilled  all  the  gob- 
lets, while  a  portion  was  poured  on  the  floor  as  liba- 
tion to  the  gods. 

28.  Prophecy.'  Seers  and  augurs  had  a  clear  insight 
into  the  action  and  workings  of  the  gods  (A,  70),  and 
endeavored  to  ascertain  the  will  of  heaven.  By 
manifold  signs  they  foretold  the  future.  The  seer 
Calchas  knows  (A,  94)  that  the  pestilence  is  a  pun- 
ishment sent  by  Apollo  for  the  insult  oH'ered  to  the 
priest  Chryses.  By  the  omen  of  the  serpent  de- 
vouring the  eight  young  sparrows  with  their  mother, 

1  Harrington  and  Tolman.  Greek  and  Koiuan  Mythology, 
19. 


(56) 


Fig.  6.    Heka  Ludovisi 

(Rome.) 


THE  HOMERIC  DIVINITIES  57 

the  prophet  divines  the  nine-year  siege  of  Troy  (B, 
322) .  The  future  was  especially  foretold  by  the  flight 
of  birds.  When  an  eagle  drops  a  serpent  from  his 
talons  in  front  of  the  Trojun  army  as  it  is  advancing 
against  the  Greek  fleet  (M,  200),  Folydamas  inter- 
prets it  as  a  sign  of  disaster.  An  eagle  bearing  otf  a 
white  goose,  in  spite  of  the  cries  of  its  pursuers,  and 
flying  past  the  chariot  of  Telemachus,  is  a  prophecy 
to  Helen  that  Odysseus  will  soon  return  and  destroy 
the  suitors  (o,  160).  Thunder  and  lightning  from  a 
clear  sky  are  an  omen  to  the  Greeks  of  imminent  de- 
feat (0,  75).  "When  Penelope,  alluding  to  the  inso- 
lent conduct  of  the  suitors,  wishes  for  the  return  of 
Odysseus,  and  Telemachus  sneezes  (p,  541),  she  in- 
terprets it  as  a  propitious  sign  that  the  beggar's 
prophecy  will  be  fultilled.  Odysseus  (u,  98)  prays 
for  divine  jissurance  that  his  plans  for  vengeance  may 
succeed;  thereupon,  from  the  blue  sky,  Zeus  sends  his 
thunder,  and  from  a  servant's  room  near  by  he  hears 
a  faithful  maid  praying  that  the  insolent  suitors  may 
to-day,  for  the  last  time,  enjoy  their  meal. 

29.  The  Oath.  The  sacred  pledge  in  which  the  high- 
er powers  were  called  upon  as  witnesses  was  observed 
even  among  the  gods.  Hera  swears  to  Zeus  (O,  30), 
by  the  earth,  heaven,  and  the  Styx,  by  Zeus's  sacred 
head  and  her  own  couch.  She  swears  to  the  god  of 
sleep  (H,  271),  by  the  water  of  the  Styx,  touching  the 
earth  with  one  hand  and  the  sea  with  the  other.  Ca- 
lypso swears  to  Odysseus  (t,  184),  by  the  earth,  heav- 
en, and  the  Styx,  that  she  will  truly  dismiss  him 
without  harm.  When  the  Greeks  and  Trojans  strike 
a  treaty  before  the  duel  between  Paris  and  !Menelaiis 
(r,  273),  Agamemnon  cuts  the  hair  from  the  head  of  the 


58  HOMERIC  LIFE 


sacrificial  animals  and  distributes  it  among  the  princes 
who  are  present  as  witnesses.  Then  he  invokes  Zeus, 
the  sun,  all  the  rivers  of  the  land,  the  earth,  and  all 
the  avenging  Erinyes,  to  watch  over  a  faithful  ful- 
fillment of  the  compact.  After  the  sacrifice  a  liba- 
tion follows,  but  Priam  carried  the  slaughtered  ani- 
mals back  to  Troy  because  it  is  not  permitted  to  par- 
take of  an  animal  sacrificed  in  connection  with  an 
oath.  Odysseus,  clad  as  a  beggar,  swearing  by  Zeus, 
the  guest  table,  and  the  hearth  of  Odysseus,  gives  the 
swineherd  assurance  that  he  will  see  the  return  of  his 
master  {$,  158). 


HOMEEIC  SOCIETY 

Public  Life 

30.  The  Kingly  Power.  Among  the  civilized  peo- 
ples mentioned  in  the  Homeric  poems — such  as  the 
Greeks,  Trojans,  and  Phaeacians — we  find  a  patri- 
archal form  of  government.  At  the  head  stands  the 
king,  who  rules  his  people  like  the  father  of  a  family 
(c,  12).  His  sovereignty  is  derived  from  Zeus,  and 
the  first  ancestor  is  always  represented  as  a  son  of 
Zeus  himself.  Therefore  kings  are  called  Zeus- 
sprung,  Zeus-blessed  shepherds  of  the  people.  The 
king  dwells  in  a  large  palace,  which  surpasses  all 
other  abodes  in  greatness  and  splendor  and  which  is 
easily  recognized  (^,  300).  In  this  castle  he  summons 
to  council  the  nobles  of  the  people  (elders).  These 
meetings  are  accompanied  by  a  public  feast.  In  the 
assemblies  of  the  people  the  king  bears  a  scepter  as 
an  outward  sign  of  his  station.     Agamemnon's  seep- 


THE    HOMERIC   DIVINITIES  59 

ter  was  studded  with  golden  nails  (B,  loi).  The 
scepter  was  also  carried  by  the  priest,  the  judo-e,  and 
every  one,  in  fact,  who  spoke  in  council. 

The  kino;  liad  among  his  pe()])le  the  threefold  office 
of  priest,  judge,  and  connnander.  On  account  of  his 
kingly  office  distinctive  honors  were  shown  him,  and 
he  received  the  revenue  of  special  crown  lands;  the 
whole  people  contributed  to  the  support  of  his  house- 
hold, and  at  meals  he  was  served  with  the  choice 
pieces  of  food.  He,  however,  had  to  entertain  the 
elders  of  the  people,  to  furnish  them  with  old  wine, 
to  receive  strangers  who  came  seeking  help,  and  to 
honor  them  with  presents.  The  cost  of  these  gifts 
was  divided  among  the  people  {v,  13). 

31.  The  Aristocracy.  The  nobles,  elders,  leaders, 
and  counselors  form  the  aristocracy.  They  consti- 
tute the  court,  which,  with  the  king  as  judge,  decides 
upon  all  weighty  matters  before  they  reach  the  popu- 
lar asseml)ly.  When  summoned  to  the  king's  palace 
they  are  his  table  companions.  They  are  also  called 
kings  themselves,  and  can  summon  him  to  a  council, 
as  the  twelve  elders  among  the  Phaeacians  are  accus- 
tomed to  do.  They  receive  and  send  out  embassies, 
approve  the  action  of  the  peo])le,  go  security  for 
them,  and  in  weighty  matters  they  jointly  administer 
justice. 

32.  The  Middle  Class.  The  middle  class  embraces 
the  free  men  with  small  and  independent  possessions. 
They  constitute  the  assembly  of  the  ])eopIe,  the  com- 
mon coimcil,  whicli  entertains  the  ])r()posals  of  the 
elders,  and  they  declare  their  approval  of  one  or  the 
other  speaker;  but  they  have  no  ])art  in  rendering  de- 
cisions.    In  addition  to  those  who  are  absolutely  free, 


(30  HOMERIC   LIFE 


the  poems  distinguish  tenants,  who,  while  personally 
free,  yet  enjoy  no  rights;  and  laborers,  who  are  hired 
to  the  rich. 

33.  The  Slaves.  The  slaves  are  either  prisoners  of 
war  or  strangers  who  have  been  seized  or  bought. 
They  are  also  called  dependents,  or  members  of  the 
household,  as  a  sign  that  they  were  considered  a  part 
of  the  lord's  family.  The  intimacy  between  master 
and  servant  is  expressed  in  such  endearing  terms  as 
those  with  which  the  swineherd  Eumaeus  accosts  his 
young  master,  Telemachus:  ""Dear  child,"  "Sweet 
light  of  my  eyes;"  while  Telemachus,  in  turn,  ad- 
dresses the  old  servant  as  "Dear  father."  Eumaeus 
laments  the  fate  of  his  master  more  than  he  could 
have  lamented  his  own,  and  he  pledges  his  life  to  re- 
store his  master  to  power. 

Such  faithful  servants  as  Eumaeus,  Dolius,  and  Eu- 
rycleia  acted  as  overseers  and  had  control  over  inferior 
slaves.  So  four  herdsmen  were  under  Eumaeus ;  Eury- 
cleia  superintended  fifty  maidservants,  and  Eurynome 
served  under  her  as  housekeeper  and  chambermaid  of 
Penelope.  It  wan  the  duty  of  the  slaves  to  guard  and 
tend  the  flocks,  to  manage  the  fields  and  gardens,  to 
discharge  the  household  duties,  and  to  perform  the 
more  menial  services  at  the  table.  The  female  slaves, 
under  the  direction  of  the  mistress,  tended  to  the  house- 
keeping, cleaning  of  the  rooms  and  furniture,  wash- 
ing of  the  linen,  grinding  of  grain,  baking  of  bread, 
and  feeding  of  poultry.  Maidservants  superintended 
the  meals  and  served  the  mistress.  Two  chamber- 
maids were  personal  attendants  of  the  queen  and  her 
daughter.  Chambermaids  prepared  the  bed  at  night. 
Above  all,  the  slave  women  had  to  card  and  spin  the 


THE   HOMEUIC  DIVINITIES  61 


wool.  The  household  of  Odysseus,  including  the 
herdsmen  of  his  many  flocks  on  the  mainland  and  in 
Ithaca,  together  with  the  slaves  of  the  field,  srarden, 
and  house,  probably  exceeded  one  hundred  in  number. 

Private   Life 

34.  The  Family.  Life  in  the  homes  of  the  Trojan 
princes,  in  the  palace  of  Odysseus  at  Ithaca,  and  in 
the  royal  family  of  the  Phaeacians,  presents  a  beauti- 
ful picture  of  the  devotion  of  wives  to  their  husbands, 
the  tender  regard  and  affection  of  husbands  for  their 
wives,  and  the  reverent  love  and  obedience  on  the  part 
of  children  toward  their  parents.  Although  the  man 
was  naturally  the  head  of  the  family,  yet  the  wife,  in 
the  heroic  age,  held  such  a  distinguished  position  that 
Helen,  who  had  been  carried  away  by  Paris,  was  treated 
with  the  tenderest  regard  by  the  aged  Priam  and  her 
brother-in-law.  Hector.  Arete  was  so  loved  and  hon- 
ored by  her  husband,  Alcinotis,  that  whoever  sought 
the  help  of  the  king  did  well  to  win  the  intercession 
of  the  queen.  Brothers  cannot  act  more  lovingly 
and  kindly  than  did  the  sons  of  Alcinotis  toward 
their  sister.  Odysseus  extols  matrimonial  harmo- 
ny as  the  greatest  happiness  {C  182).  The  noblest 
example  of  such  conjugal  afiection  is  that  of  Odys- 
seus and  Penelope  themselves.  Love  and  fidelity 
of  the  wife  form  the  fundamental  thouofht  of  the 
whole  Odyssey.  Odysseus,  in  spite  of  the  delight 
of  companionship  with  Calypso,  cannot  forget  his 
wife  and  home,  but  is  drawn  to  Ithaca  by  an  ardent 
yearning. 

35.  Marriage.     Marriage  was  a  holy  thing,  and  any 
violation  of  it  was  followed  by  severe  punishment. 


62  HOMERIC   LIFE 


The  royal  house  of  Priam,  once  so  happy  and  domi- 
nant, his  city  and  his  people,  had  to  atone  with  their 
ruin  for  the  rape  of  Helen  by  Paris.  In  the  assem- 
bly of  the  ^ods,  at  the  beo^inning  of  the  Odyssey, 
Zeus  himself  points  out  how  the  bloody  fate  of  Aegis- 
thus  came  upon  him  as  a  punishment  for  disloyalty 
to  his  marital  vows.  The  love  of  a  wife  for  her  hus- 
band cannot  be  more  deeply,  more  sincerely,  or  more 
comprehensively  expressed  than  by  the  words  which 
Andromache  spoke  to  Hector  as  he  was  going  into 
battle:  "  Since  the  death  of  my  parents  and  of  my 
brothers  and  sisters,  and  since  the  destruction  of  my 
home,  you,  O  Hector,  have  been  father,  mother,  and 
brother  to  me."  The  marriage  of  Zeus  and  Hera 
forms  a  striking  contrast  to  this  domestic  peace  and 
happiness.  Hera  often  disagrees  with  her  husband, 
and  threats  of  violence  are  necessary  to  bring  her  to 
submission.  This  is  a  reminiscence  of  the  primitive 
mythical  signification  of  Zeus  and  Hera  as  per- 
sonifications of  the  bright  sky  by  day  and  the  star- 
ry sky  l)y  night,  which  were  naturally  conceived  of  as 
standing  in  contrast  to  each  other. 

36.  The  Marriage  Ceremony.  Originally  the  bride 
was  purchased  from  her  father,  and  a  maiden  with 
many  suitors  brought  much  cattle.  Yet  it  is  impor- 
tant that  the  bridegroom  be  acceptable  to  her,  so 
that,  on  the  whole,  he  seems  to  be  the  man  chosen  and 
appointed  by  fate.  It  was  customary  to  give  the 
young  couple  a  dowry. 

The  marriage  celebration  was  accompanied  by  a 
brilliant  feast,  to  which  relatives  and  neighbors  were 
invited  in  great  numbers.  Singers  struck  the  lute, 
and  jugglers,  keeping  time  to  the  music,  performed 


?.    Dkmktek  of  Cmdus 
(British  Museum.) 


(63) 


64r  HOMERIC   LIFE 


all  kinds  of  entertaining  tricks.  Those  who  con- 
ducted the  bride  from  the  home  of  her  parents  to 
that  of  her  husband  were  furnished  with  garments 
for  the  occasion.  The  bride  also  received  costly  ap- 
parel from  the  bridegroom;  hence  it  happens  that 
Helen  presents  to  Telemachus  a  beautiful  dress  for 
his  future  bride.  By  torchlight  the  train  moved 
through  the  city,  while  those  who  took  part  in  the 
festival  sang  the  marriage  song  (u/xcVatos,  2,  493),  and 
the  young  people  circled  in  the  dance  to  the  music  of 
flutes  and  lyres. 

37.  The  Housewife  conducted  the  household  affairs, 
and  had  the  supervision  of  slave  women.  The  spe- 
cial task  of  women  was  the  weaving  of  garments, 
and  those  were  praised  who  were  skillful  in  artistic 
work.  We  read  (T,  125)  that  Helen  wove  into  her 
cloth  the  man-destroying  battles  of  the  Trojans  and 
the  Achaeans.  Of  the  Phaeacian  women  it  is  said 
{C,  110)  that  they  were  skilled  in  artistic  weaving. 
The  women  usually  staid  in  the  interior  of  the  house, 
and  preferred  to  remain  for  rest  and  recreation  in 
the  upper  chamber;  but  they  also  associated  with  the 
men  in  the  men's  hall.  Arete  is  actually  present  at 
the  assembly  of  the  elders  in  the  megaron  (^,  305); 
Penelope  weaves  in  the  hall  with  her  wooers,  and 
there  spends  the  evening  (p,  96).  Helen  takes  great 
interest  in  the  conversation  of  Menelatis  with  Telem- 
achus and  Pisistratus.  Yet,  as  soon  as  a  woman  from 
a  royal  family  appears  in  public,  or  comes  before  men 
in  important  matters,  she  is  veiled  and  is  accompa- 
nied by  two  female  servants. 

38.  Children,  while  they  were  yet  young,  were 
under  the  supervision  of  the  mother.     Later  they 


THE    HOMERIC   DIVINITIES  65 


were  placed  under  suitable  servants,  to  bo  prac- 
tically instructed  for  subsequent  life.  The  sons 
gave  all  kinds  of  help  and  service  in  the  sacri- 
fices and  the  feasts;  they  turned  the  spits,  passed  the 
food,  mixed  the  wine  and  water  in  bowls,  filled  the 
goblets  and  passed  them  around.  Children,  while 
growing  up,  also  helped  in  the  household  duties. 
Nausicau,  in  place  of  her  mother,  attended  to  the 
w^ashin^  of  the  linen,  but  her  brothers  kindly  helped 
her  when  they  returned  home.  Telemachus  cared 
for  the  garden  of  the  aged  Laertes  and  the  herds  of 
Eumaeus,  and  Paris  remained  with  the  flocks  oh  Mount 
Ida.  Special  attention  was  given  to  the  instruction 
of  the  growing  youth  in  all  kinds  of  bodily  exercise — 
running,  wrestling,  throwing  the  discus,  contesting 
with  weapons,  driving,  and,  above  all,  in  dancing, 
singing,  playing  of  the  lyre,  and  the  practice  of  speak- 
ing in  public.  Children  felt  deeply  their  indebtedness 
to  their  parents;  therefore  Telemachus  grieves  that  he 
cannot  repay  his  father's  love  (tt,  120). 

39.  Squires.  As  in  the  Middle  Ages  the  noble  youth 
followed  the  knight  on  his  adventures,  so  likewise 
among  the  Homeric  heroes  there  existed  a  comrade- 
ship in  arms.  These  squires,  who  had  often  been 
reared  from  childhood  with  the  son  of  a  prince,  ac- 
companied the  hero  into  battle,  where  they  served  as 
chariot  drivers  and  stood  1)V,  ready  to  give  help  in 
the  contest.  Sometimes  such  a  comrade  was  older 
than  his  master,  and  was  given  by  the  father  to  the 
young  son  of  the  prince  as  guide  and  counselor.  The 
love  and  loyalty  which  bound  these  companions  to- 
gether is  seen  in  the  relation  of  Achilles  to  Pa- 
troclus. 
5 


66  HOMERIC   LIFE 


The  Rights  of  Strangers 

40.  Piracy.^  Although  it  was  felt  to  be  a  duty  to 
assist  a  fellow-countryman  in  distress,  yet  strangers 
and  foreigners  were  considered  enemies  whom  one 
might  rob,  buy  as  slaves,  or  kill.  For  this  reason 
piracy  and  robbery  were  of  common  occurrence  and 
not  at  all  dishonorable;  in  this  respect  they  may  be 
compared  to  the  disorders  caused  by  the  robber- 
knights  of  the  Middle  Ages.  It  was  customary  to 
ask  strange  seamen  whether  they  were  pirates  or  mer- 
chants. Taphians  robbed  a  rich  Phoenician  of  his 
daughter  (o,  427)  and  sold  her  in  the  Syrian  isle, 
where  the  father  of  Eumaeus  was  king.  When  the 
Phoenician  merchants  landed  there,  this  slave  woman 
carried  away  the  little  Eumaeus,  and  after  her  death 
he  was  sold  to  Laertes  in  Ithaca.  Odysseus  himself, 
after  the  sack  of  Troy,  made  without  cause  a  preda- 
tory incursion  against  the  Cicones. 

41.  Hospitality.  Although  no  custom,  based  on  in- 
ternational law,  protected  the  stranger,  yet  he  stood, 
according  to  religious  belief,  under  the  special  pro- 
tection of  Hospitable  Zeus.  Even  if  the  stranger  ap- 
pears as  a  pitiful  beggar,  he  cannot  be  driven  away 
{i,  56),  for  all  strangers  and  beggars  are  sent  by  Zeus, 
and  even  the  smallest  gift  is  welcome  (C>  207).  Hos- 
pitable Zeus  himself  is  their  avenger  (t,  270).  Only 
barbarous  people,  cannibals,  such  as  the  Cyclopes  and 
the  Laestrygones,  violate  this  divine  law.  Among 
all  civilized  men  mistreatment  of  a  stranger  was  con- 
sidered a  disgraceful  act.     On  that  account  the  inso- 

iTsountas  and  Manatt,  Myceuaeau  Age,  pp.  354,  355 


THE    HOMERIC    DIVINITIES  67 

lent  conduct  of  the  suitors  reached  its  highest  point, 
bringing  upon  them  the  punishment  of  heaven,  when 
their  leaders,  Antinotis  and  Eurymachus  {p,  462),  so 
shamefully  treated  the  beggar  Odysseus.  This  law 
demanded  that  one  should  conduct  the  stranger  into 
his  home,  take  the  staff  from  his  hand,  and  give  him 
the  place  of  honor  at  his  side.  If  he  came  from 
a  journey,  a  bath  was  prepared  for  him  before 
the  meal  (8,  48).  In  any  case,  he  was  furnished 
with  water  that  he  might  wash  his  hands.  After- 
wards he  was  hospitably  entertained,  and  the  host 
offered  the  drink  of  welcome.  Not  until  after  the 
meal  was  the  stranger  asked  his  name,  his  coun- 
try, or  the  purpose  of  his  coming.  He  was  har- 
bored as  long  as  he  cared  to  remain.  Before  his 
departure  he  was  honored  with  guest-presents,  and 
whenever  it  was  necessary  he  was  given  escort. 
Hospitality  between  families  became  in  this  man- 
ner a  lasting  bond  which  extended  to  posterity.  So 
Glaucus  and  Diomedes  avoided  conflict  when  they 
learned  of  the  hospitality  existing  between  their 
families,  a  pledge  which  they  renewed  by  mutual 
gifts  (Z,  235). 

42.  The  Suppliant,  w^ho,  pursued  by  an  enemy, 
clasped  the  knees  of  the  one  he  met,  or  who,  having 
entered  a  house,  fell  down  upon  the  hearth,  stood 
under  the  special  protection  of  Zeus;  to  help  him  was 
a  sacred  duty.  Hence  Nausicaii  was  ready  to  give 
Odysseus  food  and  clothing  and  to  accompany  him  to 
the  city,  telling  him  how  he  might  procure  from  her 
father  help  and  escort  home.  "When  the  suppliant 
had  thrown  himself  l)eside  the  hearth  in  the  hall,  the 
oldest  of  the  elders  asked  King  Alcinotis  to  let  the 


68  HOMERIC    LIFE 


stranger  arise  aud  to  show  him  a  seat  at  the  princely 
table.  On  account  of  their  sacredness,  the  hearth  and 
the  guest-table  were  coupled  in  the  oath  with  the 
name  of  Zeus.  Only  insolent  men,  such  as  the  goat- 
herd Melantheus,  violated  this  custom,  and  thereby 
incurred  the  vengeance  of  the  Erinyes  (p,  212).  Even 
the  professional  beggar  Irus  receives  his  regular  alms 
(cr,  1). 

43.  Forms  of  Social  Intercourse.  The  Greeks,  by 
reason  of  their  high  state  of  culture  and  their  innate 
appreciation  of  beauty,  had  developed  natural  court- 
esy and  polite  forms  of  intercourse.  When  Zeus  en- 
ters the  assembly,  the  gods  all  arise  and  remain 
standing  until  he  has  taken  his  seat  (A,  533).  When 
Telemachus  sees  Athena  present  in  the  form  of  Men- 
tes  (a,  119),  he  considers  it  improper  to  keep  a  stran- 
ger standing  before  his  door,  steps  up  to  him,  extends 
his  hand,  receives  his  spear,  bids  him  welcome,  and 
begs  him  to  accept  friendlv  attention  aud  hospitality; 
finally  he  asks  him  to  explain  what  has  brought  him 
thither.  In  the  third  book  of  the  Odyssey  Telem- 
achus comes  to  Pylos  in  company  with  Athena,  who 
is  disguised  as  Mentor.  When  Athena  bids  Telem- 
achus to  go  directly  to  Nestor,  he  hesitates;  it  is 
not  fitting  that  he,  a  young  man,  should  addi-ess  an 
older  one.  But  as  soon  as  the  Pylians  perceive  the 
strangers  they  hasten  to  them.  When  Telemachus 
tarries  with  Eumaeus  (tt,  44),  and  the  beggar  offers 
him  his  seat,  Telemachus  refuses  it  with  the  words: 
"Keep  your  seat,  stranger;  I  will  find  a  chair  some- 
where else. "     Deference  should  be  paid  an  older  per- 


THK    HOiMEKIC   DIVINITIES  69 


son;  therefore  Mentor  is  the  first  to  be  served  with 
the  drink  of  welcome  (y,  50).  On  departing  Odys- 
seus turns  to  the  queen  with  the  wish  that  long  life 
may  be  allotted  to  her,  and  that  she  may.  en  joy  un- 
perturbed happiness  with  her  family  and  her  peo- 
ple (v,  (JD). 


(70) 


Fig.  8.     Poseidon 

(Rome.  Lateran.) 


HOMERIC  ANTIQUITIES 

The  Homeric  House 

44.  The  Plan  of  the  House. ^  As  we  learn  from  the 
excavations  at  Tiryns,  the  prince's  palace,  with  its 
walls,  formed  the  strong  fortress  which  attorcled  pro- 
tection in  case  of  war  for  all  those  dwelling  around  it. 
A  protecting  wall  (1),  provided  with  })attlements,  in- 
closed the  palace.  A  covered  hallway,  closed  in  the 
middle  with  two  broad  doors,  constituted  the  entrance 
to  the  court;  while  two  columns,  before  and  behind 
the  gate,  probably  supported  the  protecting  roof  ("2). 

Through  this  front  gate  one  passed  into  a  spacious 
court,  the  council  place  of  the  elders  (3).  The  larger 
assemblies  were  held  in  the  market  i)lace  (p,  52).  The 
court  had  a  smooth  stone  floor  (p,  1()0),  and  served  as 
a  place  of  recreation  for  the  suitors.  Here  stood  an 
altar  to  Zeus  (i),  the  protector  of  the  court.  Near 
the  palace  were  several  seats  of  polished  stone  for  the 
princes.  Over  these  seats,  clear  across  the  front  of  the 
palace,  extended  a  broad,  covered  hallway  (5),  support- 
ed by  columns.  The  entrance  to  the  psdace  itself  was 
forme<l  by  a  narrow  vestibule  situated  in  the  mid- 
dle and  supported  by  two  columns  (6);  through  the 
doors  of  this  vestibule  one  came  into  the  great  men's 
hall.  The  columns,  with  their  niches,  served  to  hold 
the  spears.  The  hall  or  meiraron  (7)  was  l)uiltin  the 
form  of  a  rectangle;  its  high  roof  rested  upon  four  col- 
umns (9),  which  stood  within,  forming  a  smaller  rec- 

^Tgountas  and  Manatt,  Mycenaean  Age,  pp    44-50.  55-66. 

(■1) 


72 


HOMERIC   LIFE 


tangle,  and  extending  above  the  height  of  the  hall. 
In  the  middle  stood  a  large  hearth  (8),  the  place  of 
refuge  for  all  fugitives.  Directly  opposite  the  en- 
trance was  the  back  door,  from  which  a  passage  ( LO) 


Plan  1.    Palace  of  Odysseus 


led  to  the  women's  apartment  (11).  In  this  back  part 
of  the  house  was  also  situated  the  bath-room  (12),  for 
Telemachus  and  Theoclymenus  laid  aside  their  cloth- 
ing in  the  men's  hall  (p,  86)  in  order  to  go  up  to  the 
bath.     Through  the  same  back  door  Penelope  was  ac- 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES  73 


customed  to  enter  the  uiegaion.  Here  was  her  scat 
(p,  yT)  when  she  spiiu  wool  and  listened  to  the  re- 
port of  Telemachus  after  he  returned  home  from  his 
journey.  Over  the  women's  apartment  rose  an  up- 
per story  containing  a  room  for  the  princess  and  a 
chamber  in  which  the  bow  of  Odysseus  was  kept;  a 
stairway  (14)  in  the  passage  led  thither.  In  the  ex- 
treme rear  of  the  palace  lay  the  prince's  bedcham- 
ber (13). 

In  addition  to  a  postern  door,  the  hall  of  Odysseus 
had  in  the  right-hand  wall  a  so-called  raised  door 
{opaodvpr])^  which  was  approached  by  steps;  it  led  into 
a  long  passage  which  extended  all  along  the  right 
of  the  hall,  then  around  the  corner,  and  here  it 
could  be  closed  by  means  of  a  door.  Across  this 
passage,  on  the  right-hand  side,  were  located  many 
chambers  for  the  maidservants,  the  arms,  and  the 
treasures  of  Odysseus.  This  part  of  the  castle  nuist 
have  formed  a  large  right  wing;  for  when  Eumaeus 
stands  before  the  door  of  the  outer  court,  accom- 
panied by  Odysseus,  who  is  disguised  as  a  beggar, 
the  latter  remarks  that  the  house  is  easily  recognized 
as  a  prince's  abode,  since  one  building  is  joined  to 
another  (p,  266). 

Accordingly,  we  may  picture  the  palace  of  Odysseus 
as  containing  a  main  central  portit)n  embracing  the 
prince's  court  together  with  the  wide  vestibules,  the 
men's  hall,  the  women's  apartment,  the  bath-room, 
the  bedroom,  and  an  upper  story;  while  the  right 
wing  held  chambers  for  the  servants  and  other  mis- 
cellaneous  apartments.  A  left  wing  inclosed  the 
mills,  the  stalls  for  the  cattle  and  mules,  as  well  as 
the  barnyard. 


74  HOMERIC   LIFE 


45.  The  Interior  of  the  Palace.^  The  floor  consisted 
of  hard-packed  mortar,  and  the  walls  had  a  coating 
of  whitewash.  Sometimes,  in  the  front  hall  and  on 
the  walls  of  the  men's  chamber,  bronze  plates  were 
fastened  (?;,  86).  In  the  hall  of  Alcinotis,  along  the 
walls  there  ran  a  cornice  of  blue-glass  paste,  called 
kyanos^  which  was  prepared  at  the  Egyptian  factories 
in  great  quanties,  and  was  distributed  by  the  Phoeni- 


□cu.  . .  ^  ~'''''y' 


{- 


33 


Fig.  9.    Kyanos  Frieze  from  Palace  at  Tiryns 

cian  traders  throughout  the  world.  This  frieze  often 
contained  geometrical  figures,  rosettes,  and  spirals. 
Sometimes  large  paintings  covered  the  walls;  thus 
the  hall  at  Tiryns  showed  a  bull  dashing  along,  with 
a  driver  springing  upon  his  back.  The  doors  in  rich 
princely  abodes  were  covered  with  gold  plate,  while 
the  door  posts  and  lintels  were  covered  with  silver 
plate.  The  halls  and  the  rooms  received  light  through 
apertures  formed  by  the  roof  beams,  which  were 
placed  diagonally  across  each  other,  with  large  inter- 
vening spaces.  For  this  reason  the  men's  hall  was 
better  lighted  because  the  four  columns  supporting 

iTsountas  and  Manatt,  Mycenaean  Age,  pp.  50-55. 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES 


75 


the  upper  roof,  and  the  roof  timber,  rising,  as  it  did, 
above  the  rest  of  the  hall,  left  free  an  upper  row  of 
apertures,  which  extended  around  all  four  sides. 
Since  the  smoke  of  the  hearth  and  the  torches  kin- 
dled in  the  evening  passed  oti'  through  these  spaces, 


tifu'iL-Ki"^ ^»  ji^Tds^jfeii: 


y^-ii 


Fig.  10.    The  Tiryns  Bcll 

(Fresco  from  Palace.) 

t  ie  timbers,  and  especially  the  middle  crossbeams, 
were  blackened  with  smoke  and  soot.  The  doors 
were  fastened  with  wooden  l)ars,  which  were  raised 
from  the  outside  by  means  of  a  hook  stuck  through  a 
hole,  and  which  were  lirmly  secured  to  a  door  ring 
with  a  thong. 

46.  Furniture.^  The  tables  were  small  and  of  pol- 
ished wood;  one  was  set  before  each  guest.  When 
not  in  use,  the  top  could  be  folded  back  and  the  taljle 
placed  against  the  wall.  There  were  armchairs  pro- 
vided with   backs  and  foot  rests,  as  well  as  chairs 


^Tsountas  and  Manatt,  Mycenaean  Age,  pp.  67-82. 


76  HOMERIC  LIFE 


without  arms,  round  easj-chairs,  and  simple  stools. 
The  chairs  were  of  turned  and  polished  wood,  and 
often  studded  with  silver  nails  or  adorned  with  va- 
rious kinds  of  inlaid  work.  There  were  also  certain 
small  footstools,  such  as  were  hurled  at  Odysseus  by 
Antinotls  (p,  462)  and  Eurymachus  (o-,  394). 


Fig.  11.    Armchaik 

At  evening,  in  the  hall  of  Odysseus,  three  high 
metal  lamps  filled  with  resinous  pine  wood  were 
lighted. 

The  bedstead  consisted  of  a  wooden  frame,  made  of 
four  strips  in  the  form  of  an  oblong  rectangle,  rest- 
ing upon  four  legs  of  turned  wood.  In  both  sides 
many  holes  were  bored,  through  which  thongs  were 
drawn  for  the  support  of  the  bedding.  Soft  cushions, 
with  bright  purple  coverings,  were  placed  upon  the 
couch.  Over  these  a  thick  spread  or  linen  cloth  was 
thrown.     Large  woolen  covers,  in  which  one  could 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES 


77 


completely  envelop  himself,  served  as  blankets.    Such 
was  the  arrangement  in  the  princely  families. 

In  the  home  of  the  swineherd  Eumaeus  everything 
was  simple.  He  improvised  a  seat  for  Odysseus  (I, 
60)  by  heaping  up  soft,  thick  foliage  and  spreading 
over  it  a  shaggy  goatskin.  Such  a  skin  he  also  laid 
upon  the  bedstead  (s,  519)  in  order  to  make  the  couch 
soft. 

Clothing  and  Mode  of  Life 
47.  "Weaving.     The  materials  were  prepared  by  the 

c 


ZI5 


72^ 


Fig.  12.  Loom 


wife  and  the  slave  women.  After  the  wool  had  been 
carded  by  the  mai<lservants  (M,  433;  o-,  316),  it  was 
spun  into  thread  by  means  of  the  spindle.  In  this 
process  the  left  hand  held  the  distatf,  while  the  right 


78  HOMERIC   LIFE 


hand  turned  the  spindle  made  of  reeds  and  the  stone 
spindle  rings  held  down  the  threads.  Weaving  also 
was  the  work  of  the  women.  The  loom  stood  up- 
right. The  two  warps  were  moved  backwards  and 
forwards  by  moving  crossbars,  and  while  the  weaver 
walked  before  the  loom,  the  shoot-thread  was  drawn 
through  by  means  of  a  shuttle. 

48.  The  Dress  of  the  Men.^  The  man's  clothing  con- 
sisted of  a  coat,  which  was  made  of  linen.  The  war- 
rior wore  underneath  his  armor  a  similar  garment, 
made  of  strong  material.  Out  of  doors  a  large  four- 
cornered,  variegated  woolen  cloth  was  thrown  around 
the  shoulders.  This  was  sometimes  trimmed  with 
embroidery.  It  was  fastened  about  the  breast  with 
a  buckle.  Odysseus  (t,  225)  wore  a  purple  woolen 
cloak  of  double  fold,  fastened  in  front  by  an  artistic 
golden  clasp.  The  coat  underneath  was  of  a  bright 
yellow  color,  and  clung  with  its  fine  texture  to  his 
body,  so  that  the  women  were  accustomed  to  gaze 
upon  him  with  admiration.  Another  cloak  is  men- 
tioned, which  Agamemnon  dons  when  he  goes  to  the 
assembly  of  the  princes  (B,  43).  Odysseus  covered 
his  head  with  such  a  cloak  {9,  84)  in  order  to  conceal 
his  tears.  Beautiful  sandals  were  worn  upon  the 
feet.  Laertes,  the  aged  father  of  Odysseus,  wore, 
as  a  protection  against  thorns  while  working  in  the 
hedge,  leather  gloves,  leather  leggings,  and  a  goat- 
skin cap. 

49.  The   Dress   of   the  Women.-      The   close   linen 
dress  reached  to  the  feet,  and  was  held  together  at 

iTsountas  and  Manatt,  Mycenaean  Age,  pp.  159-167. 
2  Ibid.,  pp.  169-190. 


HOMERIC  ANTIQUITIES  79 

the  shoulder  and  left  side  by  means  of  a  brooch; 
therefore  the  women  were  spoken  of  as  wearing  long 
garments.  Often  the  dress  was  colored,  for  it  is  de- 
scribed as  variegated,  and  the  women  are  said  to  have 
beautiful  garments  or  saffron  garments.  The  arms 
and  the  ankles  remained  free.  The  dress  was  held 
together  by  means  of  a  girdle,  which  was  sometimes 
set  wdth  gold  and  ornaments  of  all  kinds;  therefore 
thewomen  are  called  "beautifully  girdled,"  In  public 
they  wore  large  bright  veils,  which  they  drew  before 
their  faces  when  conversing  with  men.  The  head- 
dress consisted  of  a  diadem  or  golden  fillet  over  the 
hair.  They  also  adorned  themselves  with  necklaces 
consisting  of  several  rows  of  amber  and  gold  pieces 
fastened  together.  They  wore  bands,  which  closely 
encircled  the  neck,  like  metal  collars.  The  buckles 
often  consisted  of  two  circles  of  closely  laid  spirals, 
and  to  the  earrings  were  attached  three  little  balls  or 
a  golden  berry.  The  clasp  with  which  Odysseus 
fastened  his  mantle  was  a  double  brooch  adorned  on 
top  with  a  beautiful  hunting  scene  m  which  a  dog  has 
just  seized  a  fawn. 

50.  The  Three  Meals  were  breakfast,  dmner,  and 
supper.^  Eumaeus  and  Odysseus  prepared  their 
breakfast  by  roasting  meat  left  over  from  the  pre- 
ceding day,  with  which  they  ate  bread  and  drank 
sweet  wine  (tt,  46-60).  Dinner  likewise  consisted  of 
bread  and  roasted  meat.  The  bread  was  served  in 
many  pieces  in  a  small  basket.  The  meat  was  cut 
into  thin  strips,  sprinkled  with  salt  and  meal,  and 
roasted  on  spits  which  rested  on  a  stone  support  and 


iTsountas  and  Manatt.  Mycenaean  Age,  p.  69. 


80  HOMERIC   LIFE 


had  to  be  turned  rapidly  back  and  forth  above  the 
coals.  There  were  no  knives  and  forks,  but  food  was 
carried  to  the  mouth  with  the  fingers.  After  the 
guests  had  washed  their  hands,  each  took  his  place  at 
his  respective  table  (a,  136).  Then  the  housekeeper 
brought  in  the  little  baskets  of  bread,  and  the  carver 
served  meat  of  many  kinds.     It  is  evident  that,  in  ad- 


FiG.  13.    Gold  Cup  from  Mycenae 

dition  to  the  roast  meat,  they  ate  fruits  and  vegeta- 
bles, for  frequent  mention  is  made  of  many  kinds  of 
food.  The  servant  brought  wine  mixed  with  water, 
in  a  golden  cup.  The  attendants  and  pages  superin- 
tended the  preparation  and  serving  of  meals.  The 
large  mixing  bowls,  in  which  the  pages  mixed  the 
wine  with  water,  were  metal — sometimes  silver  with  a 
golden  rim  (o,  105;  *,  7-13).  In  addition  to  the  small 
golden  goblets,  large  double-handled  drinking  vessels, 
artistically  wrought,  were  used  on  special  occasions, 


HOMERIC  ANTIQUITIES  81 


The  heavy  driuking  cup  of  Kestor  (A,  632),  in  Avhich 
he  offers  the  wounded  physician  Machaon  the  refresh- 
ing wine  mixture,  was  studded  with  golden  nails, 
and  had  on  both  sides,  above  the  handles,  a  pair  of 
doves  pecking  at  the  edge.^  Every  meal  began  and 
ended  with  a  libation.  A  friend's  health  was  drunk, 
and  greeting  was  given  him,  while  the  goblet  Avas 
held  in  the  right  hand  (o-,  122).  Eumaeus  slew  two 
young  pigs  as  a  dinner  for  himself  and  Odysseus  U, 
74),  and,  having  roasted  the  meat,  sprinkled  it  with 
white  meal.  A  large  dish  served  him  as  a  mixing  bowl, 
but  his  goblet  was  of  wood.  Besides  the  daily  meals, 
there  were  also  great  banquets  at  special  festivals — 
such  as  the  sacrificial  meal  at  the  close  of  the  heca- 
tomb (A,  431),  the  wedding  feast  in  the  home  of 
Menelaiis  (8,  3),  the  funeral  repast  which  Orestes  pre- 
pared for  the  Argives  (y,  309)  after  he  had  slain 
his  cousin  Aegisthus  and  his  mother,  Clytemnestra, 
the  murderers  of  his  father,  Agamemnon.  The  daily 
feastings  of  the  suitors  were  prolonged  so  as  to  force 
Penelope,  through  this  wasting  of  the  king's  sub- 
stance, to  make  a  choice. 

51.  The  Chariot.  The  two-horse  chariot  is  most  fre- 
quently mentioned  in  the  Homeric  poems. '^  The  two- 
w^heeled  chariot,  with  a  semicircular  seat  mounted 
by  means  of  a  step,  was  used  both  for  traveling  and 
for  war.  The  seat  accommodated  two  persons.  Upon 
a  chariot  of  this  kind  Nestor's  son,  Peisistratus,  drives 
Telemachus  to  Sparta  (y,  483)  and  back  (o,  182).  On 
a  high,  well-wheeled  wagon,  drawn  by  two  nmles, 

^Tsountas  and  Manatt,  Mj'^cenaean  Age,  p.  100. 
2  Reichel,  Homerische  Waffea,  pp.  120-146. 
6 


(82) 


Fig,  14.    Apollo  Belvldeke 

(Rome,  Vatican.) 


HOMERIC  ANTIQUITIES 


83 


Nausicaa  carries  the  washing  to  the  stone  wash 
troughs  by  the  seashore  {C,  72).  This  vehicle  had 
four  wheels  and  a  large  frame.  The  animals,  which 
were  horses,  mules,  or  oxen,  wore  a  yoke.  This,  be- 
ing fastened  to  the  pole  with  a  pin,  extended  over 


Fig.  15.     War  Chariot 

their  necks  and  encircled  them  with  its  two  hanging 
bows.  The  reins  were  fastened  to  the  back  of  the  bit, 
which  was  frequently  richly  adorned  with  painted 
ivory  (A,  141).  The  horses  often  wore  frontlets  or- 
namented with  gold. 

52.  Armor.^  The  simplest  outfit  of  an  old  hero  con- 
sisted of  a  helmet,  a  long  shield,  a  sword,  and  two 
lances.    The  long  shield,  which  covered  the  entire  body 


*Tsountasand  Manatt,  Mycenaean  Age,  pp.  191-216. 


84 


HOMERIC  LIFE 


like  a  tower,  made  the  breastplate  and  greaves  super- 
fluous in  the  earliest  times.  ^  When  in  place  of  the 
long  shield,  such  as  Ajax  the  son  of  Telamon  bore, 
the  smaller  round  shield  came  into  use,  the  warrior 
protected  himself  with  cuirass  and  greaves. 

The  helmet  was  a  head-piece,  which  left  the  face 
free.  It  was  made  of  leather,  and  was  trimmed  with 
metal.  It  had  a  bronze  edge,  or  rim,  ornamented  with 
four  metal  knobs;  while  on  top  a  bronze  cone  carried 
a  waving  horse  tail  crest.  There  were  also  helmets 
entirely  of  bronze,  covered  over  with  numerous  inter- 


Fir,.  16.    The  Warrior  Vase  from  Mycenae 

woven  rings,  as  well  as  mere  head-pieces  without 
crests.^  The  shield  consisted  of  several  layers  of  ox- 
hide, which  were  bordered  with  a  bronze  rim  and 
bound  together  with  bronze  rivets.  It  was  some- 
times ornamented  with  strips  or  covered  entirely 
with  metal.  The  long  shield  was  hung  by  a  leather 
strap  over  the  left  shoulder,  and  was  controlled  by 
the  left  hand,  which  grasped  the  handle  on  the  in- 
side.    It  was  so  heavy  that  its  handling  required  great 


iReichel,  Homerische  Waffen,  pp.  1-50. 
nbid.,  pp.  94-112. 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES  85 

strength  and  skill,  and  made  it  necessary  for  the 
wearer  to  advance  cautiously  (N,  158;  n,  609).  Aga- 
memnon's shield  was  very  skillfully  wrought  (A,  32). 
The  shield  of  Achilles,  forged  by  the  god  Hephaestus 
(2,  478),  was  the  most  artistic  work  of  its  kind.^  A 
triple  brilliantly  shining  rim  encircled  it.  It  consist- 
ed of  five  layers.  Beautiful  scenes  adorned  the  sur- 
face. Heaven,  earth,  and  tho  sea  were  represented. 
In  the  middle  was  heaven,  with  the  shining  sun  and 
the  other  luminaries,  the  full  moon  and  the  constel- 
lations. Then,  in  the  following  circles,  were  scenes 
from  the  earth.  First  were  two  towns — one  in  peace, 
with  feasting  and  a  marri-tige  procession  passing 
through  the  streets,  and  a  lawsuit  in  progress  at  the 
market  place;  the  other  engaged  in  war,  with  an  at- 
tack on  cattle  at  a  river,  and  a  conflict  between  two  ar- 
mies at  its  banks.  Then  came  p.  circle  depicting  three 
scenes  of  country  life  at  difi"erent  seasons  of  the  year: 
the  plowing  of  the  fields,  the  harvest,  and  the  vin- 
tage. The  next  circle  presented  three  pastoral  scenes: 
a  herd  of  cattle,  a  flock  of  sheep,  and  a  shepherds' 
dance.  Finally,  the  ocean  stream  formed  the  outer- 
most circle  of  the  shield. 

The  sword  was  made  of  bronze.  It  was  long  and 
two-edged.  It  had  a  hilt  sometimes  skillfully  wrought 
of  silver,  or  studded  with  silver  nails,  and  a  sheath  of 
silver  or  ivory.  Agamemnon's  sword  (N,  30)  is  de- 
scribed as  having  a  hilt  brilliant  with  golden  nails, 
and  a  silver  sheath  fastened  to  a  golden  belt. 

The  strong,  heavy  lance  had  a  shaft  of  ash  wood, 
with  a  bronze  point  at  each  end.     Tho  short  point  at 


'Reichel,  Homerische  Waffen,  pp    146-165. 


86 


HOMERIC   LIFE 


the  lower  end  enabled  one  to  stick  the  lance  in  the 
ground  beside  him.  Since  the  lance  was  very  long 
(Z,  319,  actually  eleven  cubits),  it  was  often  spoken 
of  as  "long  shadowing."  It  was  kept  in  a  case  (T, 
387). 

The  small  round  shield,  like  the  long  one,  was  made 
of  hides  encircled  by  a  metal  rim  and  fastened  with 
metal  nails.  Then,  too,  we  find  targets— small  circu- 
lar shields,  with  dependent  strips  of  leather — which 
served  to  weaken  the  force  of  the  missiles.  It  was 
througrh  the  introduction  of  the  round  shield  that  the 
breastplate  came  into  use.  Underneath  the  armor 
was  worn  a  close-fitting  woolen  jacket  without  sleeves. 


iFiG.  17.    Breastplate 

The  breastplate  consisted  of  leather,  upon  which 
were  fastened  curved  metal  plates.  ^   On  the  back-piece 


1  Reicbel,  Homerische  Waffen,  pp.  63-94. 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES  87 


there  were  shoulder  bands  fitted  with  thongs,  which 
were  tightly  bound  to  the  belt.  The  lower  part  of 
the  body  was  protected  by  means  of  a  belt  of  metal 
plate  padded  with  wool  and  buckled  over  the  under- 
clothing. To  the  breastplate  was  attached  the  apron, 
formed  of  dangling  strips  of  leather  ornamented  with 
metal,  which  covered  the  belt  and  extended  halfway 
down  the  upper  part  of  the  leg.  Where  the  breast- 
plate and  the  apron  joined  a  still  broader  girdle  was 
worn,  which  was  fastened  in  front  by  clasps.  It  is 
said  of  the  breastplate  of  Agamemnon  (A,  24)  that  it 
consisted  of  ten  strips  of  steel,  twelve  of  gold,  twen- 
ty of  tin,  and  there  arose  on  either  side  of  his  neck 
three  steel  serpents,  which  glittered  with  all  the  col- 
ors of  the  rainbow.  The  greaves— at  first  probably 
leather  gaiters,  such  as  Laertes  wore  when  working 
in  his  garden  (w,  229) — were  made  of  flexible  tin, 
and  were  fastened  over  the  ankle  by  means  of  leather 
straps.  ^ 

The  bow  in  the  hands  of  good  archers,  such  as  Paris, 
Pandarus,  Teucer,  and  Odysseus,  was  a  formidable 
weapon;^  but  even  whole  tribes  were  armed  with  the 
bow,  such  as  the  inhabitants  of  the  Thessalian  penin- 
sula. Magnesia,  the  companions  of  Philoctetes,  and 
the  Paeonians,  who  fought  on  the  side  of  the  Trojans. 
The  famous  bow  of  Pandarus  (A,  105)  was  made  of 
the  horns  of  an  ibex,  which  were  sixteen  hands  broad. 
It  was  polished  by  the  turner  and  set  with  tips  of  gold. 
The  string  was  fastened  at  one  end,  and  was  stretched 
and  bound  fast  in  a  ring  at  the  other. 

The  arrow^  was  of  reed,  and  had  a  barbed  bronze 

iReichel,  Homerische  Waffen,  pp.  57-62. 
2Ibid.,pp,  112-120.     sibid.,  pp.  115,  116. 


(88) 


Fig.  18.    Aktemis  of  Versailles 

(Louvre.) 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES  89 

tip.  On  the  other  end  there  was  a  notch,  which  was 
fitted  on  the  cord.  Often  on  this  end  there  was  also  a 
feather  inserted  obliquely.  The  quiver  for  the  ar- 
rows was  furnished  with  a  cover. 

The  archer  endeavored  to  find  a  sheltered  place. 
Thus  Teucer  took  his  stand  beneath  the  shield  of  his 
brother  (©,  267),  and  Paris  (A,  371)  sought  refuge 
behind  the  tombstone  of  llus.  But  archers  some- 
times bore  the  light  targets  or  round  shields  with  de- 
pendent leather  strips. 

Slings  were  carried  by  the  Locrians.  They  were 
woven  out  of  sheep's  wool  (N,  599). 

Mention  is  made  also  of  hatchets  and  battle-axes, 
which  were  used  in  hand-to-hand  conflicts  (O,  711). 

We  find  that  huge  stones,  as  large  as  the  hand 
could  grasp,  were  hurled  with  immense  force  against 
the  shield  of  the  antagonist;  such  Hector  used  against 
Ajax  (H,  264:),  and  Ajax  against  Hector  (H,  270). 

Warfare 

63.  The  Duel.  The  kinds  of  contest  mentioned  in 
the  Iliad  are  the  duel  and  the  battles  of  the  armies. 
In  the  duel  of  Paris  and  Menelatls  the  attack  falls 
by  lot  to  Paris  (T,  325).  He  hurls  his  spear  upon 
the  shield  of  Menelatls,  but  to  no  purpose,  for  its 
point  is  bent.  The  lance  of  Menelaiis  pierces  the 
shield,  breastplate,  and  coat  of  Paris,  and  would  have 
wounded  him  in  the  abdomen  had  he  not  avoided  the 
fatal  blow  by  quickly  turning  to  one  side.  Hereupon 
Menelaiis  threw  his  sword  against  his  opponent,  but 
it  was  broken  into  many  pieces  upon  his  helmet. 
Full  of  rage,  he  sprang  upon  Paris,  seized  him  by  the 
helmet,  and  dragged  him  toward  the  Achaeans.    Then 


90  HOMERIC   LIFE 


the  chin-piece  of  his  helmet  broke,  and  Aphrodite 
rescued  her  favorite  and  carried  him  away  from  the 
battlefield.  As  the  first  day  of  battle  began  with  a 
duel,  so  it  ended  with  a  fight  between  Hector  and  Ajax 
(H,  206). 

54.  Conflicts  between  Champions  usually  opened  the 
battle.  Antilochus,  at  the  beginning  of  the  engage- 
ment, slew  the  Trojan  Echepolus  (A,  457).  When 
the  Greek  Elephenor  dragged  forth  Echepolus  in 
order  to  strip  him  of  his  armor,  he  was  stabbed  by 
the  Trojan  Agenor,  and  thereupon  followed  a  general 
conflict  between  the  champions.  Ajax  overthrew  the 
Trojan  Simoisius.  Antiphus,  the  son  of  Priam, 
hurled  his  spear  at  Ajax,  and  missed  him,  but  struck 
Leucus,  the  champion  of  Odysseus,  as  he  was  on  the 
point  of  dragging  Simoisius  away.  Filled  with  anger, 
Odysseus  rushed  through  the  champions  and  laid  low 
Demacoon,  the  illegitimate  son  of  Priam.  Then  the 
Trojan  champions  under  Hector  fell  back,  and  the 
Greeks,  with  shouts  of  triumph,  dragged  the  fallen 
over  to  their  side,  and  pressed  forward.  Naturally 
the  bravest  advanced  as  champions.  Springing  down 
from  their  war  chariots,  they  took  their  places  in 
front  of  the  horses.  It  was  the  duty  of  the  di'iver  to 
remain  as  close  as  possible  to  his  companion  in  the 
fiofht,  to  assist  and  rescue  him  in  case  he  was  wound- 
ed.  Diomedes,  as  a  champion  (E,  13),  did  not  shrink 
from  advancing  against  the  mounted  sous  of  the  priest 
Dares,  slew  Phegeus,  put  Idaeus  to  flight,  and  took 
their  span  of  horses  as  booty.  When  the  Greek 
champions  slew  all  their  opponents,  the  whole  line  of 
Trojans  took  to  flight  (n,  306-357).     Thus  we  see 


Fig.  19.    Aphrodite  of  Melos 
(Louvre.) 


(91) 


92  HOMERIC   LIFE 


that  the  decision  of  the  battle  rested  largely  upon  the 
valor  of  the  champions. 

55.  The  General  Engagement.  The  general  engage- 
ment (A,  446;  0,  60)  was  at  its  height  when  both  ar- 
mies, with  several  detachments  of  closely  crowded 
troops,  rushed  at  each  other.  Touching  one  another 
with  their  shields  and  helmets,  they  stood  in  as  close 
contact  as  when  a  man  builds  a  w^all  with  close-set 
stones  (n,  212).  These  densely  crowded  troops  of  the 
Myrmidons  fell  into  live  divisions,  under  live  leaders. 
They  were  under  the  command  of  Patroclus,  with  his 
chariot  driver,  Automedon.  Before  sallying  forth, 
Achilles  had  poured  from  a  cup  of  rare  beauty  a  liba- 
tion to  Dodonian  Zeus,  in  order  that  the  battle  might 
result  favorably.  The  war  cry  of  the  leader  gave  the 
signal  for  battle.  With  closed  ranks  they  rushed 
upon  the  Trojans,  who  turned  to  flight.  Patroclus, 
first  of  all,  laid  low  Pyrachmes,  the  leader  of  the 
Paeonians,  and  drove  the  enemy  back  out  of  reach  of 
the  ships.  While  among  the  other  Greek  troops  the 
battle  was  broken  up  into  many  single  combats,  Pa- 
troclus broke  through  the  line  of  the  Trojans  and  forced 
the  men  back  toward  the  ships,  in  order  to  slay  them 
between  the  Scamander  river  and  the  fleet;  and  with 
his  own  hand  he  killed  very  many  of  them. 

The  Homeric  Ship 

56.  The  Shipbuilder  first  laid  the  timbers  for  the 
keel;  upon  this  he  fastened  the  prow  and  the  stern. 
Then  the  ribs  were  attached  to  the  keel  and  bound 
together  at  the  top  by  transv^erse  timbers.  The 
planks  were  nailed  lengthwise  on  the  ribs.  A  por- 
tion of  the  ship's  prow,  which  had  an  ornamental  d^- 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES 


93 


sign,  was  covered;  so  also  a  part  of  its  stern,  in  order 
that  on  this  deck  the  helmsman  might  manage  the 
rudder.  On  the  timbers  which  bound  the  ribs  to- 
gether the  oarsmen  sat,  with  their  feet  placed  against 
a  brace,  and  pulled  the  oars,  which  were  bound  by 
means  of  straps  to  the  oar-locks.  The  mast  of  fir- 
wood  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  ship,  set  into  a  base 
and  held  upright  by  means  of  transverse  timbers. 
By  the  removal  of  a  cross-beam  the  mast  could  be 
laid  back  over  the  stern;  it  was  bound  firmly  to  the 
prow  by  two  ropes  in  front.     A  cord,  which  ran  from 


Fig.  20.    Ship 

the  stern  up  through  a  hole  in  the  top  of  the  mast, 
raised  the  sail-yard.  Both  ends  of  the  yard  were 
fastened  with  ropes  (braces)  to  the  stern.  From  the 
yard  himg  the  sail,  which  was  secured  to  the  stern 
by  means  of  two  cords  (clew-lines).  A  ship  was 
manned  by  about  fifty  oarsmen.     Its  sides  were  black- 


94 


HOMERIC  LIFE 


ened  with  pitch,  the  prow  was  covered  on  either  side 
with  red  lead,  while  the  bow  was  often  blue.  The 
ship  was  drawn  upon  the  shore  by  means  of  long 
poles  provided  with  hooks.  Long  poles,  consisting 
of  several  pieces  fastened  together  with  bands,  were 
used  on  board  for  weakening  the  shock  of  collision 
with  other  ships.  Heavy  stones  fast-ened  to  ropes 
served  as  anchors.  The  ship  was  made  fast  to  the 
shore  with  special  cables  from  its  stern.  It  was  de- 
sirable to  keep  as  close  to  the  land  as  possible,  and  at 
night  the  sailors  preferred  to  sleep  on  the  shore.  Be- 
fore landing  the  mast  was  lowered  and  the  ship  was 
rowed  to  the  shore. 

57.  The  Barge  of  Odysseus  got  its  form  from  the 
sections,  which  consisted  of  four  timbers — two  fas- 


FiG.  21.    Bakge  op  Odysseus 

tened  in  the  shape  of  an  angle,  and  two  standing  up- 
right on  the  sides  of  this  angle.  Many  such  frames 
fastened  together  with  long  side  timbers  formed  the 
hull  of  the  barge,  which  therefore  had  the  shape  of  a 
trough  with  sloping  floor.  The  equipment  with  mast, 
yard,  sail,  rudder,  braces,  and  clew-lines,  was  the  same 
as  that  of  the  ship. 

Business,  Trade,  Sport,  and  Amusement 
58.  Trade  in  the  earliest  times  was  a  lively  barter, 
and  was  carried  on  especially  by  the  Phoenicians.     It 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES  95 

is  related  of  them  (o,  416)  that  as  a  cheating  people 
they  carried  with  them  countless  trinkets;  that  they 
consumed  a  whole  year  in  selling  their  wares  and  in 
loading  again  their  ship  with  provisions;  that  on  their 
departure  they  carried  off  a  Sidonian  slave  girl,  to- 
gether with  the  little  son  of  the  chief.  Athena,  in 
the  form  of  Mentes,  the  prince  of  the  Taphians,  as- 
serts (a,  IS-i)  that  the  ship  bears  bright  iron,  and 
that  he  will  dig  for  copper  in  Cyprus.  The  Taphians 
are  mentioned  as  slave-dealers  (v,  383).  Besides  the 
Phoenicians,  the  Cretans  and  the  Phaeacians  were 
seamen.  Money  consisted  chiefly  of  cattle  and  of 
bronze  and  slaves.  The  bronze  armor  of  Diomedes 
is  worth  nine  head  of  cattle  (Z,  236),  and  the  gold  ar- 
mor of  Glaucus  is  worth  a  hundred.  The  slave  girl 
Eurycleia  was  worth  twenty  head  of  cattle  (a,  431), 
and  for  the  price  of  one  hundred  cattle  Achilles  had 
sold  Lycaon,  the  captive  son  of  Priam  ($,  79). 

69.  Industrial  Activity,  which  produced  those  trin- 
kets handled  by  the  sea  traders,  had  already  reached  a 
high  stage  of  perfection  in  the  Mycenaean  age,  as  the 
excavations  show.  The  long  necklaces  of  the  women 
have  already  been  mentioned  above.  On  one  chain 
we  find  pieces  of  amber  in  a  gold  setting  upon  which 
a  meander  pattern  is  engraved.  Neckbands,  spiral 
brooches,  earrings  with  cup-shaped  ornaments,  and 
needles,  all  show  a  well-developed  technique.^  The 
arms — shields,  breastplates,  belts,  swords,  and  knives 
— are  even  more  artistically  decorated.  The  dagger 
blades  show  inlaid  work  which  consists  of  lifelike 
representations  of  lion  hunts  and  combats  with  other 

^Tsountas  and  Manatt,  Mycenaean  Age,  pp.  179,  180. 


96 


HOMERIC   LIFE 


animals.  ^  The  Sido  n  i  a  n  s , 
especially,  were  famed  on 
account  of  their  skill,  and 
the  products  of  their  industry 
were  used  in  trade.  j\Ieu- 
elails  presented  Telemachus 
with  a  costly  silver  milk 
pitcher  with  golden  r  i  m  , 
which  came  from  Sidon  (8, 
618).  Likewise  the  one 
which  Achilles  offers  as  a 
prize  (*,  743)  is  of  Sidonian 
workmanship.  Bright  gar- 
ments, trimmed  with  the 
variegated  embroidery  of  the 
Sidonian  women,  were  high- 
ly prized.  Paris  brought 
from  Phoenicia  to  Troy  Si- 
donian women  weavers,  and 
the  most  beautiful  of  the 
Sidonian  garments  which 
they  produced  were  vowed 
by  Queen  Hecuba  to  the 
goddess  Athena  of  Ilios 
(Z,  289).  A  beautiful  gar- 
ment, with  variegated  em- 
broidery, was  presented 
by  Helen  to  Telemachus 
for  his  future  bride,  on  his 
departure  from  Sparta  (o, 
105). 

Fig.  22.     Inlaid  Dagger        iTsountas  and  Manatt,  Myce- 
Blade  from  Mycenae     naean  Age,  pp.  200,  201. 


':i' 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES  97 


60.  Artists,  in  the  most  comprehensive  sense,  includ- 
ed the  builders.  They  probably  had  already,  in  earliest 
times,  organized  a  close  guild  with  peculiar  traditions 
and  regulations  in  art,  in  the  same  manner  as  the 
seers,  the  physicans,  and  the  singers.  Therefore  they 
were  often  summoned  from  a  distance,  and  were  hon- 
ored as  public  oflicials  (p,  383).  Such  a  school,  with 
its  well-established  rules  of  construction,  is  attested 
by  the  uniformity  in  plan  of  the  royal  palaces  at  Ti- 
ryns  and  Mycenae,  as  well  as  the  description  of  the 
palace  of  Odysseus  at  Ithaca.  Special  mention  is 
made  of  the  builders  in  Troy  (Z,  315).  Shipbuilding 
also  required  a  peculiar  skill.  A  celebrated  ship- 
builder of  the  Trojans  was  Harmonides,  who  had 
built  for  Paris  the  smoothly  gliding  ships  (Z,  59).  As 
an  eminent  artist.  Homer  also  mentions  Epeius  (^, 
493),  who  built  the  wooden  horse  for  Troy;  the  turner 
Icmalius,  who  prepared  for  Penelope  a  beautiful 
lounging  chair  of  ivory  and  silver  (t,  57);  the  ship- 
builder Noemon,  in  Ithaca,  who  lent  Telemachus  a 
ship  for  his  journey  to  Pylos  and  Sparta;  and  the 
skillful  Polybus,  in  Scheria,  the  manufacturer  of  the 
balls  with  which  the  princes  of  the  Phaeacians  played 
so  cleverly  before  Odysseus. 

Odysseus  himself  possessed  conspicuous  skill  in 
woodwork.  Not  only  did  he  prepare  the  barge 
mentioned  above,  but  also,  in  an  outer  room  of  his 
palace,  behind  the  women's  apartments,  he  had  at- 
tached a  bed  to  a  wild  olive  tree,  thus  using  its  trunk 
as  a  bedpost.  Moreover,  he  adorned  the  l)edstead  in 
an  artistic  fashion  with  gold,  silver,  and  ivory  ("A, 
192). 

61.  The  Wealth  of  the  Homeric  Princes  and  Nobles 
7 


(98) 


Fig.  23.    Hephaestus 
(Rome.) 


HOMEllIC  ANTIQUITIES  99 

consisted  chiefly  in  the  possession  of  herds.  Odys- 
seus, who,  compared  with  the  power  and  wealth  of 
Menehiils,  was  only  a  petty  king,  possessed,  on  the 
mainhmd,  twelve  flocks  of  sheep,  twelve  droves  of 
swine,  twelve  flocks  of  goats;  and  at  Ithaca,  eleven 
flocks  of  goats,  which  Melanthius  tended;  besides 
twelve  droves  of  swine  containing  nine  hundred  and 
sixty  animals,  under  the  oversight  of  Eumaeus.  In 
addition  to  cattle-raising,  his  slaves,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Dolius  and  his  six  sons,  carried  on  extensive 
farming  and  gardening,  which  were  the  special  care 
of  the  aged  Laertes  (w,  497). 

62.  Horticulture.  To  judge  from  the  description  of 
the  gardens  of  Alcinoiis  (-q,  112),  horticulture  had  al- 
ready reached  a  high  state  of  development.  The  large 
four-acre  garden  plot,  situated  near  the  court,  was  in- 
closed by  a  thick  hedge,  and  the  front  sections  were 
set  with  tall  fruit  trees— pears,  pomegranates,  apples, 
and  glittering  olive  trees.  In  a  sunny  spot  adjoining 
this  was  a  vineyard,  and  a  well -tended  vesretable  srar- 
den  was  not  lacking. 

63.  Fishing.  Besides  bread,  fruit,  dairy  products, 
and  the  flesh  of  the  animals  of  the  flocks,  flsh  also  is 
mentioned  (t,  113)  as  a  common  food,  and  we  are 
told  (/u,,  253)  how  the  fisherman,  sitting  upon  the 
edge  of  the  seashore,  catches  fish  with  a  long  pole; 
and  as  soon  as  he  notices,  by  the  treml)ling  movement 
of  the  cork  which  floats  ui)on  the  water  and  supports 
the  hook,  that  a  fish  has  ni!)b!ed  at  the  bait,  he  throws 
the  fish  out  upon  the  land  with  the  rod.  We  read 
again  (xi  -^Sl:)  how  fish  are  caught  by  fishermen  in 
large  many-meshed  nets,  and  are  shaken  oi^t  upon  the 
shore.     Homer  is  also  acquainted  with  divers  (tt,  745), 


100  •  HOMERIC  LIFE 


who,  in  spite  of  the  great  depth  of  the  sea,  spring 
headforemost  overboard  into  the  waves  to  seek  for 
oysters,  which  even  at  that  time  serve  as  food.  But 
usually  the  Homeric  heroes,  as  we  saw  above,  pre- 
ferred roast  beef,  mutton,  or  pork,  or  the  flesh  of 
game  caught  in  the  chase.  ^ 

64.  Hunting.'^  Besides  marauding  expeditions  and 
incursions,  the  Homeric  heroes  like  to  take  part  in 
the  chase(  t,  156).  Upon  an  island  abounding  in  moun- 
tain goats,  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  land  of  the  Cy- 
clops, Odysseus  prepared  a  great  hunt.  Armed  with 
bows  and  pikes,  the  hunters  divided  themselves 
into  three  parties,  surrounded  the  woods,  and  laid 
low  one  hundred  and  eighteen  goats,  so  that  nine 
goats  fell  to  the  lot  of  each  of  the  twelve  ships, 
while  Odysseus  received  ten  for  himself.  The  stag 
hunt  of  Odysseus,  in  which  he  brought  down  the 
stag  with  lofty  antlers  at  the  river,  is  vividly 
portrayed  (k,  158).  When  the  sun  shone  hot  the 
animal,  having  grazed  on  the  heath,  descended  to 
the  river,  but  just  as  it  stepped  out  into  the  path 
it  was  struck  in  the  middle  of  the  back  by  a  spear, 
and  with  a  loud  cry  fell  to  the  ground.  A  great 
deal  of  danger  attended  the  wild  boar  hunt,  in  which 
Odysseus  as  a  youth  participated  during  a  visit  to  his 
grandfather  Autolycus,  in  the  wilds  of  Parnassus  (t^ 
429).  They  proceeded  very  early  in  the  morning  to 
the  ravines  of  the  mountain,  where  the  pack  of  hounds 
soon  struck  the  trail  of  a  powerful  boar,  and  was  fol- 
lowed by  the  sons  of  Autolycus;  but  in  front  of  all, 

'Tsountas  and  Manatt,  Mycenaean  Age,  p.  334. 
2 Ibid.,  p.  352. 


Fig.  24.    Hermes 

(Florence,  UflBzi.) 


(101) 


102  HOMERIC   LIFE 


close  behind  the  dogs,  was  Odysseus,  brandishing  his 
spear.  As  soon  as  the  animal  in  his  covert  saw  how 
near  the  hunters  were,  he  raised  his  bristles,  and  with 
flaming  eyes  rushed  out  of  the  dark  thicket,  and  before 
Odysseus,  who  had  already  taken  his  position  for  the 
thrust,  could  strike  him,  the  boar,  dashing  underneath 
his  spear,  had  inflicted  a  deep  flesh-wound  over  his 
knee;  but,  pierced  through  the  right  shoulder  by  Odys- 
seus's  lance,  he  immediately  fell  over  with  a  loud  cry. 
The  hunter,  from  his  lurking  place,  brought  down  an 
ibex,  with  antlers  sixteen  hands  broad,  at  the  very 
moment  it  stepped  forward  from  behind  the  cliff  (A, 
105).  The  only  lion  hunts  mentioned  are  those  which 
occur  when  the  beast  tries  to  break  into  a  cattle  stall 
at  night  (/a,  657),  and  is  kept  off  by  the  country  peo- 
ple with  dogs,  javelins,  and  burning  torches,  until  at 
daybreak  he  departs  of  his  own  accord;  or  when  the 
lion  devours  the  game  killed  by  the  hunters,  undis- 
mayed by  the  attacks  of  the  men  and  dogs  (T,  23). 

Bird-catching  is  mentioned  in  x,  469,  where  a  flgure 
is  used  of  thrushes  and  doves  caught  in  a  net. 

65.  Contests  and  Dancing.  The  Greek  custom  of 
contending  with  each  other  in  Ijoxing  matches  and 
displaying  one's  strength  and  skill  reaches  back  to 
the  times  of  Homer.  So  Alcinotis,  the  king  of  the 
Phaeaciaus,  after  the  great  feast,  arranged  public 
contests  in  the  market  place,  in  honor  of  Odysseus 
(^,  97).  Seven  youths  entered  the  race,  in  which 
the  king's  son,  Clytoneiis,  gained  the  victory.  Then 
followed  wrestling,  jumping,  discus-throwing,  box- 
ing, and,  finally,  dancing,  and  a  skillful  game  of  ball. 
After  the  maidens  of  Nausicaa  had  washed  the  linen 
and  spread  it  out  on  the  seashore  to  bleach  {t,  100), 


HOMERIC   ANTIQUITIES  103 

they  likewise  engaged  in  a  game  of  ball,  which  the 
king's  daughter  began  with  a  song,  and  while  sing- 
ing and  dancing  they  threw  the  ball  to  each  other. 

Before  the  suitors  of  Penelope  went  to  their  meals 
in  the  men's  hall,  they  were  accustomed  to  pass  the 
time  in  front  of  the  palace  with  all  kinds  of  games, 
including  draughts,  similar  to  our  chess  (a,  107),  and 
sometimes  contests  of  strength.  So  they  exercised 
themselves,  and  contended  with  each  other  in  throw- 
ing the  discus  and  hurling  the  spear  (8,  626). 

The  contests  must  be  mentioned  w^hich  Achilles  ar- 
ranged at  the  funeral  games  of  Patroclus  (*,  263),  and 
in  which  the  most  celebrated  princes  and  heroes  con- 
tended for  the  prizes  offered  in  chariot-racing,  box- 
ing, combats  with  the  spear,  throwing  the  discus, 
shooting  the  bow,  and  hurling  the  spear. 


Front  View.  Side  View. 

Fig.  25.    Athena  Parthenos 
Varvakeion  Statuette,  Phidian  Type 
(Athens,  National  Museum.) 
(104) 


HOMERIC  GENEALOGY 

The  Most  Important  Genealogical  Trees 

66.  The  Dardanidae  of  Ilios 

Zeus 

I 
Dardanua 

Tros 


Ilus 
Laomedon 
Priam 
50  sons,  12  daughters 


Assaracus 
Capys 

Anchises 

I 
Aeneas 


Ganymede 


The  most  famous  sons  of  Priam  and  Hecuba  are  Hector, 
Deiphobus,  Helenus,  Paris  (Alexandros),  Troilus,  and  Poly- 
dorus.  Laodice  and  Cassandra  are  mentioned  as  their  daugh- 
ters. 


67.  The  Aeacidae  of  Aegina 

Zeus 

I 
Aeacus 


Peleus  in  Phthia 
Achilles 
Neoptolemus 


Telamon  in  Aegins 


Ajax 
Eurysaces 


Teucer 


(105) 


106  HOMERIC  LIFE 


68.  The  House  of  Odysseus  of  Ithaca 

Zeus 

I 
Cephalus 

Arceisius       Autolycus  Perieres 

Laertes  =  Anticleia  Icarus 


Ctimene  Odysseus=Penelope  Iphthime 

Telemachus 

69.  The  Tantalidae  of  the  Peloponnesus 

Zeus 
Oenomaiis  Tantalus  (Phrygia) 

Hippodameia     =     Pelops  (Elis) 
Thyestes  (Argolis)  Atreus  (Mycenae) 


Aegisthus      Menelaiis  (Lacedaemon)  Agamemnon  (Mycenae) 

According  to  I.,  145,  the  three  daughters  of  Agamemnon 
are  Laodice,  Chrysothemis,  and  Iphianassa  (Iphigenia);  and 
his  son  is  Orestes. 


la:\l>s  and  people 

The  geographical  knowledge  of  Homer  is  limited 
to  the  countries  bordering  on  the  coast  of  the  Aegean 
Sea.  Lands  to  the  west  were  known  only  from  the 
wonderful  reports  of  the  Phoenician  sailors. 

70.  Greece 

Homer  had  no  common  appellation  for  Greece  or 
for  the  Greek  people.  He  speaks  of  the  country  of 
Hellas  and  mid-Argos  (a,  .344),  or  Argos  and  the 
land  of  the  Achaeaus  (T,  75),  when  he  wishes  to  des- 
ignate the  Peloponnesus  and  the  rest  of  Greece. 

The  Inhabitants  Are  Called: 

1.  Achaeans^  or  the  sojis  of  the  Achaeaus,  with  the 
epithets  "bright-eyed,"  "head-covered,"  "quarrel- 
some," "strong-hearted,"  "bronze-armored,"  "well- 
greaved."  The  Achaean  women  are  spoken  of  as 
"beautifully  clad  "  and  "beautiful-haired." 

2.  Argives^  "armed,"  "bronze-clad,"  "war-lov- 
ing," "lance-hurling." 

3.  Danadns^  "furnished  with  shields,"  "possess- 
ing swift  horses,"  "war-loving  servants  of  Ares." 

The  following  passages,  a,  239;  ^,  369;  B,  404;  *, 
236,  where  the  expression  Pan-Achaeans  occurs,  and 
likewise  B,  530,  where  we  find  the  phrase  "Pan-Hel- 
lenes and  Achaeans,"  are  probably  lute  interpolations. 

Hellas^  between  the  rivers  Asopus  and  Enipeus, 
together  with  Phthia,  on  the  river  Sperchetis,  consti- 

(107) 


108  HOMERIC   LIFE 


tutes  the  kingdom  of  Peleus,  situated  in  South  Thes- 
ealy. 

The  MyrmidonH^  the  Achaean  people  of  Achilles, 
"hio^h-spirited,"  "  war-lovino;,"  "possessing  swift 
steeds,"  "contending  with  the  spear,"  "resembling 
voracious  wolves." 

Plerians^  on  the  borders  of  Thessaly  and  Macedo- 
nia. 

Tajyhians^  a  race  on  the  Avestern  coast  of  Acarna- 
nia,  "helm-loving  pirates." 

Aetoliaiis^  "furious  in  battle." 

lonians  (N,  685),  the  inhabitants  of  Attica,  "wear- 
ers of  long  garments." 

In  the  Peloponnesus 

Argos,  a  district  of  Agamemnon,  with  the  towns 
Mycenae  (A,  30)  and  Argos;  called  "Achaean," 
"thirsty,"  "productive,"  "horse-producing." 

A7xadia,  "spear-contending  Arcadians." 

Aegialus,  t'le  later  Achaia. 

J^lis,  "horse-nurturing;"  here  rule  the  Epeiana, 
"clad  in  glittering  armor"  (N,  686). 

Jfessetie  (<I>,  15),  with  the  city  Pherae. 

Pylus^  Nestor's  kingdom,  embracing  South  Elis  and 
Messenia,  "very  sacred,"  "sandy." 

Gerenia^  the  birthplace  of  Nestor. 

Lacedaenion^  "low-lying,"  "abounding  in  ravines," 
with  the  principal  city,  Sparta. 

71.  The  Greek  Islands 

On  the  Western  Coast 
Tthaca  (i,  21),  containing  a  few  square  miles,  indi- 
cated by  Homer  as  the  most  westerly  of  the  islands. 


LANDS  AND  PEOPLE  109 

It  is  now  supposed  to  be  the  peninsula  Leucas,  and  not 
the  island  which  to-day  bears  its  name.  Since  it  was 
mountainous,  it  was  adapted  to  the  rearing  of  cattle, 
but  not  of  horses.  This  island,  together  with  Dull- 
chiam^  Satnos^  and  well-wooded  ZacyntJius  inhabit- 
ed by  the  Cephallenians,  formed  the  kingdom  of  Odys- 
seus. 

Asieris,  a  small  rocky  isle  near  Ithaca  (8,  84-6). 

Taphus,  on  the  western  coast  of  Acarnania  (a,  417). 

Islands  in  the  South 

Cytliera^  near  the  promontory  Malea  (t,  81). 

Crete^  a  large,  fruitful,  and  populous  island,  with 
ninety  towns  (t,  172).  The  large  city  Cnosus  was 
the  ancient  capital  of  the  mythical  King  Minos.  Va- 
rious nationalities  were  here  represented — primitive 
Cretans,  Pelasgians,  C3^donians,  Achaeans,  and  the 
Dorians,  who  fall  into  three  branches. 

Islands  in  the  East 

Salamis  and  Aegma^  in  the  Saronic  Gulf,  belong- 
ing to  Diomedes. 

Euhoea  and  8cyrus  (Neoptolemus). 

Islands  between  Greece  and  Asia 

Dia  (Naxos)  and  Delos  {I,  162). 

Samothrace^  hibrox^  Levinos  ("rugged,"  "holy"), 
Tenedos^  Leshos^  Chios ^  Cos^  Rhodes ^  Cyi^rus  (sacred 
to  Aphrodite). 

More  distant  islands  are  Sicania  (Sicily:  w,  307), 
and  Pharos^  at  the  mouth  of  the  Nile  (8,  355). 


110  HOMERIC   LIFE 


72.  The  Asiatic  Coast 

Asia,  deriving  its  name  from  the  Asian  mead  at 
the  mouth  of  the  river  Cayster,  near  Ephesus. 

T?'oi/,  with  its  principal  city,  Ilios. 

Trojans,  "bronze-clad,"  '"manly,"  "haughty," 
"strife-loving,"  "horse-taming." 

Trojan  women,  "beautiful-haired,"  "deep-girdled," 
"garment-trailing." 

Trojans  and  Lycians  and  Dardanians,  "fighting 
hand  to  hand"  (®,  173). 

Dardanian  women,  "deep-girdled." 

Mysians,  on  the  river  Aesepus,  "fighting  hand  to 
hand,"  "strong-spirited." 

Leleges,  opposite  Lesbos,  "war-loving." 

Maeonia  (Lydia),  "lovely  Maeonia"  (A,  141). 

Carians,  "uncouth  of  speech." 

Papldagonians,  on  the  Pontus,  "high-spirited," 
"equipped  with  shields." 

Caucones,  in  Bithynia. 

Lycians,  "shield-bearing." 

Cillcia,  in  Phrygia,  with  the  towns  Thele,  at  the 
foot  of  Mount  Placus,  and  Lyrnessus. 

Aseania,  a  district  in  Bithynia. 

PJirygia,  lying  on  the  river  Sangarius,   "rich  in 


vines." 


73.  More  Distant  Countries 

Phoenicia  (8,  83;  ^,  291),  "very  crafty"  Phoeni- 
cians (o,  419),  "renowned  seamen,"  "cheats." 

Sidonia,  the  Sidonians  "skilled  in  art,"  "famous." 

Soiymi  (Z,  184;  c,  283). 

Egij2)t,  "bitter  Egypt"  (p,448). 

Lihya,  west  of  Egypt. 


112  HOMERIC    LIFE 


74.  Fabulous  Countries  and  Nations 

Ethiopians^  ''distant,"  "remotest  of  men,"  "be- 
loved of  the  o^ods." 

A7nazo7is^  "manlike,"  "warlike." 

Giants^  "earth-born,"  related  to  the  Phaeacians  (7/, 
59),  a  race  hostile  to  the  gods,  annihilated  by  Zeus. 

Centaurs^  a  savage  race  in  Thessaly,  "inhabiting 
caves"  (A,  268). 

75.  Course  of  the  Wanderings  of  Odysseus 

C'icones^  a  people  on  the  Thracian  coast. 

LotopJiagl^  evidently  a  people  on  the  northern  coast 
of  Africa,  living  on  the  fruit  of  the  palm. 

Cyclopes^  a  wandering  tribe  at  the  lowest  stage  of 
civilization,  without  political  unity.  Near  these  was 
an  uninhabited  isle  filled  with  goats. 

Aeolia.,  an  island  lying  toward  the  north,  belonging 
to  the  wind  god  Aeolus. 

Laestrygones,  man-eating  giants  of  the  north,  dwell- 
ing in  small  towns,  with  political  organization. 

Aeaea^  in  the  extreme  northwest,  the  island  of 
Circe.  South  of  this,  in  the  Western  Ocean,  lie  the 
Mand  of  the  Sirens^  the  Wandering  Rocks^  and  the 
^Vlilte  Rock. 

Tlirinacia^  the  isle  of  Helios,  with  Scylla  and  Cha- 
rylidis  near  by. 

Ogygla^  in  the  Western  Ocean,  the  island  of  Ca- 
lypso. 

Scheria,  the  island  of  the  Phaeacians. 

Clearly  in  these  wanderings  information  concern- 
ing: the  islands  situated  in  the  western  Mediterranean 
Sea  is  so  mingled  with  all  kinds  of  sailors'  tales  about 
wonderful  isles  in  the  ocean  that  it  is  impossible  to 
determine  more  closely  the  situation  of  individual 
countries. 


THE  TEO^VD 

By  Professor  H.  C.  Tol.man 


HISSARLIK 

Translated  from  Dr.  Wilhelm  Dorpfeld's  Troja 

8 


Icro-cTat  ^fJMp,  or'  av  iror'  oXciXr;  "IXtos  ipr} 
Kol  Elpta/u.os  Ktti  Xaos  ivfifxeXio)  TLpidfxoi.o 
(114) 


THE  TROAD 

We  quote  the  following  (§§  7G-83)  from  an  article 
by  Professor  H.  C.  Tolman,  on  a  Visit  to  the  Plain 
of  Troy. 

76.  General   Description  of  the  Plain.    As  we  ap- 


-'/«' 


^^^.u.  r'li'b-^ 


V     ^     V 


•^'    ir"*.„ 


i'lci.  2G.    Mount  luA 

proach  the  coast  of  Asia  Minor,  "fair-stablished" 
Lesbos  (I,  664;  8,  342;  p,  138)  appears  on  our  right. 
Gradually  there  comes  into  view  the  whole  panorama 
of  the  Troad.  Far  in  the  extreme  south  rises  a  high 
1  (115) 


116  HOMERIC  LIFE 


mountain  peak,  from  which  extend  ramifications, 
northeastward  and  southwestward,  so  numerous  and 
multiform  that  by  old  writers  the  mountain  was 
likened  to  a  monstrous  centipede.^  This  is  "many 
ridged"  Ida  (X,  171;  A,  112;  Y,  91),  and  that  topmost 
crest  is  Gargarus,^  rising  almost  six  thousand  feet, 
blue  and  majestic,  its  ranges  broken  by  river  valleys, 
until  at  last  a  line  of  hills  runs  to  the  Hellespont  and 
completes  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  Trojan  Plain. 
On  this  summit  sat  Zeus,  "exulting  in  glory,  look- 
ing down  upon  the  city  of  the  Trojans  and  the  ships 
of  the  Achaeaus"  (®,  47-52).  Here  was  his  sanctu- 
ary (©,  48).     Hither  repaired  Hera  (H,  292). 

A  little  distance  from  the  coast  is  an  island  rising 
like  a  hill  out  of  the  sea.  Its  proximity  to  the 
shore  makes  it  a  conspicuous  object  in  the  Trojan 
country. 

Est  in  conspectu  Tenedos,  notissima  fama 
Insula  dives  opum,  Priami  dum  regna  manebant. 

The  theater  of  the  Homeric  wars  is  before  our  eyes. 
Tenedos  (A,  38,  452;  A,  625;  N,  33;  y,  159)  lies  in  front 
of  the  wide  Besika  Bay,  about  four  miles  from  the 
mainland  and  twelve  from  the  Hellespont.  Farther 
in  the  distance  is  "rugged"  Imbros  (N,  33;  fl,  78), 
above  which  towers  the  huge  Samothracian  mountain.^ 
It  was  from  this  summit  that  Poseidon  looked  upon  the 
battle,  "for  thence  was  plain  in  sight  all  Ida,  and 
plain  in  sight  were  Priam's  city  and  the  ships  of  the 

iStrabo,  XIIL,  583. 

2 Gargarus  (called  to-day  Kazdagh)  is  mentioned  in  0,48;  S, 
292,  352:  0,  152. 

^Called  by  a  Scholiast  to  N,  11,  Saoke. 


THE   TROAD  117 


Achaeans"  (N,  11-14).  In  a  clear  day  "holy"  Lem- 
nos  (B,  722)  shows  its  outline  in  the  west,  while, 
over  one  hundred  miles  distant,  Mount  Athos  (H,  229) 
is  dimly  seen  at  sunset. 

Between  the  Thracian  Chersonesus,  which  in  the 
clear  atmosphere  of  the  Troad  seems  close  at  hand, 
and  a  sandy  promontory  guarded  by  the  crumbling 
old  fortilication  of  Kum  Kaleh  ("sand  fortress"), 
the  "strong-flowing"  Hellespont  (B,  845;  M,  30)  meets 
the  sea.  Near  the  entrance  juts  out  Cape  Sigeum, 
where  to-day  is  the  Christian  village  of  Yeni  Shehr, 
while  about  four  miles  to  the  east  is  the  rocky  shore  of 
Rhoeteum  {RJioeteae  orae^  Verg.  Aen.,  III.,  108). 
Between  these  two  points,  not  very  far  from  Troy 
(for  heralds  go  and  return  before  sunrise),  was  drawn 
up  the  Greek  fleet,  "row  behind  row,  filling  up  the 
shore's  wide  mouth  which  lay  betwixt  the  headlands" 
(H,33). 

Along  the  Aegean  Sea  a  low  line  of  hills  slopes 
somewhat  abruptly  toward  the  water's  edge.  The 
eastern  range,  stretching  from  the  highest  crest  of 
Ida,  after  repeated  interruptions,  ends  at  Khoeteum. 
Between  these  eastern  and  western  ranges  lies  the 
deep-soiled  valley  of  the  Scamander,  with  here  and 
there  groves  of  oaks,  while  reed  and  tamarisk  line  the 
river  bank,  as  in  Trojan  days.^  Another  valley — this 
time  of  an  insignificant  swamp  stream,  called  Dum- 
brek  Su,  and  often  identified  with  the  Simois— cuts 
the  eastern  chain  of  hills  at  a  little  distance  from  the 
Hellespont. 

Here  at  the  southern  point  of  meeting  of  the  two 
valleys  of  the  Scamander  and  the  Dumbrek  Su  is  the 

>Cf.  Fellner.  Die  homerische  Flora,  Wiea,  1897. 


118 


HOMERIC   LIFE 


mound  of  Hissarlik,  rising  about  sixty  feet  above  the 
plain,  and  over  three  miles  distant  from  the  sea  and 
from  the  Hellespont,^  The  hillside  is  rather  precipi- 
tous on  the  north,  where  it  meets  the  swamp  of  the  lat- 
ter stream,  forming  a  marked  contrast  to  its  gentle  in- 
cline westward  into  the  broad  and  level  plain  of  the 
Scamander. 

The  name  Hissarlik  ("little  fortification '')  was  given 
to  this  locality  because  of  the  Hellenistic  remains 


(Reproduced,  by  permission,  from  Schliemanu'! 


Fio.  27:    The  Site  op  Troy 


'  Ilios 


Copyright,  1880,  hy  Harper  &  Brothers.) 


which  were  here  visible.  In  fact,  the  inhabitants  of 
the  little  settlement  of  Tshiblak,  a  mile  or  so  distant, 
designated  it  the  "Place  of  Ruins"  (Asarlik).  To- 
day it  is  a  place  of  ruins  indeed,  and,  we  may  add, 
of  isolation  and  desolation  as  well.  A  more  lonely 
spot  the  traveler  rarely  visits,  and  he  can  find  shelter 

If  cite  some  of  the  early  adherents  of  the  Troy-Hissarlik 
theory:  Maclaren, Topography  of  the  Plain  of  Troy, 1833;  Grote, 
History  of  Greece,  1846  ;  Schliemann,  Ithaka,  1869;  Gladstone, 
Homer,  1878 ;  Sayce,  Contemporary  Review,  1878;  Eckenbrech- 
er,  Die  Lage  des  homerischen  Ilion,  1843:  Braun,  Homer  und 
sein  Zeitalter,  1858;  Christ,  Topographic  der  troianischen 
Ebene,  1874 ;  Meyer,  Geschichte  von  Troas,  1877;  Lenormant, 
Les  Antiquites  de  la  Troade,  1876. 


THE  TROAD  119 


for  the  night  only  in  the  miserable  little  villages  of 
Yeni  Shehr  or  Yeni  Koi.  Yet  this  insignificant  hill 
probably  marks  the  site  of  the  Homeric  Pergamos, 
or  at  least  that  city  whose  siege  and  capture  formed 
the  historical  basis  of  the  poems.  On  the  same  pla- 
teau was  built  the  Grseco-Roman  Ilion,  with  its  world- 
renowned  Athena  temple.  Xerxes  (Herodotus,  VH. , 
43)  and  Alexander  (Arian,  I.,  11)  ascended  the  cita- 
del, believing  that  they  stood  in  "divine  Ilios." 

As  the  eye  surveys  the  Trojan  country,  it  is  attract- 
ed to  those  heights  near  Bunarbashi,  almost  ten 
miles  distant  from  the  Hellespont,  amid  which,  in 
the  mountain  fastnesses,  where  the  Ida  range  is 
high  and  steep,  is  the  fortress  of  Balidagh.  Rising 
as  it  does  five  hundred  feet,  it  forms  an  excellent 
spot  for  an  impregnable  stronghold.  In  early  times 
many  believed  that  it  was  Priam's  citadel.^ 

The  mention  of  objects  familiar  only  to  one  who 
knows  the  Trojan  country  suggests  that  the  poet  had 
seen  the  Troad;^  that,  as  he  observed  the  sun  set  be- 

^Lechevalier,  Voyage  de  la  Troade  (Lechevalier  visited  the 
Troad  iu  1785);  Cholseul-Gouffier,  Voyage  pittoresque  de  la 
Grece,  1820;  Texier,  Description  de  I'Asie  Mineure,  1839;  Per- 
rot.  Excursion  a  Troie,  1874;  Lenz,  DieEbeue  von  Troia,  1798; 
von  Moltke,  Brief e  liber  Zustiinde  und  Begebenheiten  in  der 
Tiirkei,  1841;  Forchhammer,  Beschreibuug  der  Ebene  von 
Troja.  1842;  Welcker.  Kleins  Schriften,  1844;  Kiepert,  Memoir 
iiber  die  Construction  der  Karte  von  Kleinasien,  1854;  Hahn, 
Die  Ausgrabungen  auf  der  homerischen  Pergamos,  1864;  Has- 
per,  Beitriige  zur  Topographie  der  homerischen  Ilias,  1867; 
Curtius,  Griechische  Geschichte,  1874;  Leake,  Journal  of  a 
Tour  in  Asia  Minor.  1824;  Fellowes,  Excursion  in  Asia  Minor, 
1838;  Aclaud,  The  Plains  of  Troy,  1839;  Rawlinson,  Herodo- 
tus, 1875. 

^Heinrich,  Troja  bei  Homer  und  in  der  "Wirklichkeit,  1895. 


120  HOMERIC  LIFE 

hind  Imbros  and  "wooded"  Samothrace,  bringing 
them  boldly  out  in  the  ruddy  glow  of  the  twilight, 
he  pictured  deity  on  the  mountain's  topmost  crest. 
A  man  as  conservative  in  this  matter  as  Professor 
Christ  is  led  to  assert  (  Geschichte  der  griechischen 
Lltteratur^  1898,  p.  55):  "His  descriptions  of  Mount 
Ida,  of  the  plain  of  the  Scamander  (E,  773),  of  Posei- 
don's high  lookout  from  Samothrace  (N,  10),  are  so  true 
to  nature  {zeigeiiso  viel  Natnrvmhrhelt')  that  we  must 
feel  that  the  poet  had  looked  with  his  own  eyes  upon 
the  theater  of  his  heroes'  deeds."  At  any  rate,  the 
traveler,  as  he  looks  down  upon  the  city  and  land  of 
the  Trojans,  does  not  feel  inclined  to  be  skeptical; 
rather  is  he  ready  to  exclaim: 

O  patria,  O  divum  domus,  Ilium,  et  incluta  bello 
Moenia  Dardanidum! 

Every  spot  before  him  seems  pregnant  with  the  bur- 
den of  Troy's  story: 

Hie  Dolopum  manus,  hie  saevus  tendebat  Achilles ; 
Classibus  hie  locus;  hie  acie  certare  solebatit. 

77.  The  Scamander.  Before  it  broadens  out  into  the 
plain,  the  Scamander  (Meudere)  flows  through  a  rocky 
valley.  Its  present  course  is  considerably  over  a  mile 
distant  from  Hissarlik.  It  empties  into  the  Hellespont 
at  the  extreme  west  corner  of  the  plain.  Consider  the 
situation:  the  distance  of  the  Scamander  from  Hissar- 
lik; its  outlet,  near  Sigeum,  to  the  extreme  west;  the 
Greek  fleet  along  the  Hellespont,  and,  accordingly, 
on  the  rio-ht  bank  of  the  river.  Now  Homer's  pic- 
ture  puts  the  Greeks  on  the  opposite  side.  Beloch 
represents  the  Scamander  of  Homer  as  flowing  its 


THE   TROAD 


121 


present  course.^  In  doing  this  he  is  compelled  to 
give  a  forced  interpretation  of  n,  692,  a  wrong  ex- 
planation of  A,  498,  and  4>,  1  fg.^  These  difficulties 
have  induced  many  to  believe  that  the  poet  had  no 


//ei/e'^/'^''^ 


Kojn  Kalcft 


JennSJifli' 


Map  B.     TheTroad 

acquaintance  with  the  Troad.  He  puts  the  Greek 
host  along  the  Hellespont;  again  he  represents  them 
on  the  left  of  the  Scamander.  Priam  has  to  ford  the 
river  to  visit  the  tent  of  Achilles.  Surely  there  is  no 
room  along  the  Hellespont  between  the  mouth  of  the 

iGriechische  Geschichte.  1893 

2H,  433.  and  H,  395  fg.,  are  ignoreil  by  him.     Cf.  Ileinrich, 
Troja  bei  Homer  und  in  der  Wirklichkeit,  1895. 


122  HOMERIC   LIFE 


present  Scamander  and  the  sea.  The  Greek  camp 
must,  therefore,  lie  to  the  right;  and  if  so,  how  would 
Priam  have  occasion  to  cross  the  stream  ? 

An  old  river  bed  is  seen  close  to  Hissarlik,  dry  in 
summer,  with  here  and  there  pools  of  water.  This 
has  been  identified  with  the  ancient  course  of  the  Sca- 
mander. It  is  flooded  in  the  rainy  season,  and  bears 
the  name  Kalifatli  Asmak,  from  the  little  village  of 
Kalifatli  by  its  side.  But  we  have  not  yet  enough  to 
explain  the  situation  in  the  Iliad;  for  after  passing 
Kum  Koi  ("sand  village"),  which  lies  a  little  to  the 
northwest  of  Hissarlik,  the  small  stream  has  made  a 
sharp  bend,  and  empties  through  a  delta  too  far  to 
the  west  to  allow  the  position  of  the  Greek  fleet  be- 
tween its  mouth  and  the  sea. 

The  Homeric  description  needs  the  following:  At 
Rhoeteum,  near  a  mound,  which  is  called  to-day  In 
Tepeh,  but  which  tradition  styles  the  "Tomb  of 
Ajax,"  is  observed  a  streamlet  which  almost  joins  in 
a  direct  line  the  Kalifatli  at  the  point  where  the  latter 
makes  its  bend  to  the  westward.  Here  we  may  mark 
the  mouth  of  the  historic  river.  In  that  case  the 
Scamander  of  Trojan  times  flowed  along  the  eastern 
range  of  hills,  passing  under  the  mound  of  Hissarlik, 
and  from  thence  making  its  course  in  a  straight  line 
to  the  Hellespont,  which  it  joined  at  Rhoeteum.  This 
would  leave  the  bend  of  the  sea  from  Sigeum  to  Rhoe- 
teum free  for  ships,  and  would  place  the  Greeks  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  river  to  the  Trojans.  Deme- 
trius of  Skepsis,  misinterpreting  a  statement  in  He- 
rodotus,^  supposed  that  the  shore  along  the  Hellespont 


1  Herodotus,  II.,  10. 


THE   TROAD  123 


had  advanced.  Virchow  has  made  geological  tests 
and  failed  to  find  anything  to  indicate  that  this  por- 
tion of  the  plain  is  an  alluvial  deposit.  He  shows 
also  how  it  is  impossible  for  land  to  form  against 
such  a  swift  torrent.^  Furthermore,  in  a  work  at- 
tributed to  an  old  geographer  Scylax,  the  statement 
is  made  that  llion  is  twenty-five  stades  from  the  sea, 
which  is  practically  the  distance  of  Hissarlik  from 
the  Hellespont  to-day.  This  theory  for  the  old  course 
of  the  Scamander  is  still  uurefuted.^ 

78.  The  Simois.  The  insignificant  swamp  brook 
(Dumbrek  Su),  often  identified  with  the  Homeric 
Simois,  can  hardly  be  classed  with  VergiFs  buffeting 

river: 

Ubi  tot  Simois  correpta  sub  undis 

Scuta  virum  galeasque  et  forUa  corpora  volvit. 

It  seems  that  this  stream  ought  not  to  have  a  prom- 
inent place  in  Homer;  yet  it  is  referred  to  seven  times, 
with  no  hint  of  its  being  smaller  than  the  Scamander. 
Hercher  argues  that  the  mention  of  the  Simois  in  the 
Homeric  poems  is  a  late  interpolation  by  one  who 
knew  nothing  of  the  Trojan  country.^  Rossmann 
takes  the  opposite  extreme  view,  and  believes  that 
only  one  thoroughly  versed  in  the  Troad  could  pic- 
ture the  Simois  in  the  light  it  is.  He  bids  us  look  at 
the  picture  of  the  Scamander  imploring  the  Simois  to 
aid  against  Achilles  (*,  308  fg.),  and  supposes  that 
such  a  scene  would  be  inapplicable  to  an  independent 


iBeitriige  zur  I^andeskunde  der  Troas,  1879. 
2  "Und  es  scheint  niclits  dagegen  zu  sprecben."  Heinrich. 
sUeber  die  homeriscbe  Ebene  von  Troja,  1875;  Heinrich. 
Troja  bei  Homer  und  in  der  Wirklichlieit. 
1* 


124  HOMERIC   LIFE 


{selhstandiger)  stream;  that  it  is  highly  fitting  that  the 
Simois  flow  its  sluggish  and  lazy  course,  remaining 
in  the  swamp  till  through  the  pressure  of  high  water 
it  reaches  the  Scamander.  Yet  Rossmann's  argument 
(quoted  wdth  favor  by  Heinrich)  loses  its  force  when 
we  consider  that  in  all  probability  this  portion  of  the 
Iliad  belongs  to  the  third  stratum  of  the  poem. 

79.  Bunarbashi.     To  the  old  arguments  identifying 
the  heights  of  Bunarbashi  with  ''steep"  and  "windy" 
Troy,^  Nikolaides,  in  the  'E(f>r]ix€pU  apxaioXoyiKij,  1894, 
adds  a  new  one  so  unique  that  1  take  space  to  give 
its  substance.     From  Grave  IV  on  the  Acropolis  of 
Mycenae,  a  grave  which  is  the  oldest  of  the  shaft 
tombs,  was  taken  a  silver  vase  whereon  was  pictured 
a  battle  scene.     The  vase  is  shattered,  but  one  large 
fragment  and  several  smaller  ones  are  preserved. 
The  engraving  was  obscured  by  a  thick  accretion  of 
oxide;  hence  this  most  interesting  relic  lay  in  the 
National  Museum  unnoticed.     Koumanoudes  was  the 
first  to  bring  the  scenes  to  light,  and  Tsountas  to 
give  them  to  the  world  in  the  'E<^^^cpts  apxcuoXoytK^, 
1891.     A  contest  before  a  walled  city  is  clearly  seen. 
On  the  steep  hillside  rise  the  fortifications,  towering 
above  which,  like  terraces,  are  squares  upon  squares, 
which  may  represent  the  roofs  and  towers  of  the  city. 
On  the  wall  stand  women,  five  in  number,  while  the 
hand  of  a   sixth    is    seen    upraised.      They   appeal 
wildly  to  the  struggling  warriors  to  save  the  city. 
Immediately  under  the  battlements  are  two  fio-ures. 
upright  and  serene.     These  may  be  the  elders  of  the 
town  come  out  beyond  the  gates  to  inspire  resolution, 

^  See  footnote  on  page  119. 


THE  TROAD 


125 


clothed  with  thechlaina;  ^  or  they  may  be  spearmen, 
with  shield  aud  spear,  ^  Before  the  two  figures  kneel 
bowmen,  with  arrows  fixed;  and  in  front  of  these 

At  the  bottom 


stand  slingers  in  the  midst  of  action 


^rjWM 


^.';# 


Fig.  38.    Siege  Scene  from  Silver  Vase 

(Mycenae.) 

appear  the  head  and  breast  of  a  helmeted  warrior 
wearing  a  short  chiton.    Twomen  are  crouching  among 


^  So  The  Mycenaean  Age,  p.  162, 1897.  "A  necessary  comple- 
ment was  the  chlaina,  or  thick  woolen  cloak,  reaching  to  the 
knees,  or  even  to  the  ankles,  and  doubtless  Avorn  habitually  by 
the  elders,  and  in  winter  at  least  by  the  younger  men.  It  ap- 
pears on  the  two  old  men  just  behind  the  bowmen  on  the  back- 
ground of  the  siege  scene." 

2SoRossbach,  Philologus,  1892. 


126  HOMERIC  LIFE 


the  slingers.  This  picture  almost  fits  the  battle  scene 
on  the  shield  of  Herakles.  ^ 

Nikolaides  startles  us  by  seeing  on  this  vase  the 
battlements  of  Troy.  From  the  wall  Hecuba,  An- 
dromache, and  other  women  are  looking  on  the  fate 
of  Hector  (X,  405),  while  Achilles  nods  to  the  Greeks 
not  to  strike  at  Hector,  but  to  leave  to  him  alone  the 
glory  of  his  death.  Lines  below  the  combatants  are 
interpreted  as  the  two  springs — the  one  warm,  the 
other  cold — which  the  adherents  of  the  Bunarbashi 
theory  think  they  find  on  this  spot.^ 

If  this  be  Troy,  the  steep  upon  which  stands  the  city 
suits  Bunarbashi  far  better  than  Hissarlik.  Nikolai- 
-des,  however,  fails  to  consider  that  the  vase  is  prob- 
ably older  than  the  period  of  the  Trojan  War.^  As  I 
recall  the  elevation  of  Bunarbashi,  1  think  of  the 
words  of  Count  von  Moltke  respecting  it:  "We  who 
are  no  scholars  allow  ourselves  to  be  guided  solely  by 
military  instinct  to  the  spot  which,  in  old  times  as 
well  as  now,  men  would  have  selected  for  an  inac- 
cessible citadel." 

80.  Schliemann's  Troy.  II  Stratum.  At  first  Schlie- 
mann  found  on  the  hill  of  Hissarlik  seven  distinct 
layers,  one  above  the  other.*  The  first  was  prehis- 
toric; the  second  he  believed  to  be  the  Ilios  of  Priam. 
On  the  gold  ornaments  exhumed  were  the  rosettes 


iHesiod,  Shield  of  Herakles,  237  fg. 

2Lechevalier,  Voyage  de  la  Troade,  1802.  Cf.  Heinrich, 
Troja  bei  Homer  und  in  der  Wirklichkeit. 

^Frazer,  Pausanias,  HI.,  117. 

^Schliemann,  Ilios;  Schuchhardt-Sellers.  Scbliemann's  Ex 
cavations,  1891;  Perrot  et  Chipiez,  Hist,  de  I'Art  dans  I'An- 
tiquite,  6,  176. 


THE   TROAD 


127 


and  spirals  similar  in  pattern  to  what  we  designate 
to-day  as  the  gold  work  of  the  oldest  stage  of  Myce- 
naean civilization.  A  palace  was  discovered  corre- 
sponding somewhat  in  general  arrangement  to  the  pal- 
aces of  Tiryns  and  Mycenae.     The  walls  of  defense  of 


Fig.  29. 


Gold  Ornaments  (with  Spirals  and  Rosettes) 
FROM  II  Stratum 


the  citadel  were  of  considerable  magnitude.  A  confla- 
gration had  destroyed  the  town.  This  must  be, 
Schliemann  thought,  the  Homeric  Troy.  In  perfect 
assurance  he  apjilied  to  every  object  found  an  appro- 
priate name.  The  gold  ornament,  with  its  countless 
tassels,  became  part  of  the  "Treasure  of  Priam" 


128  HOMEKIO   LIFE 


{Scftatz  des  Friamos).  In  the  Museum  ftir  Volker- 
kunde,  at  Berlin,  where  most  of  the  discoveries  are 
preserved,  we  used  to  read  a  label  as  significant  as 
the  following:  "Skull  of  a  Trojan  Warrior"  {Schddel 
eines  trojanischen  Kriegers).  We  cannot  condemn 
such  enthusiasm  when  we  realize  that  the  all-con- 
trollino-  ambition  of  Schliemann's  life — a  life  which 
reads  like  romance— was  to  find  the  Homeric  Per- 
gamos.  It  is  pathetic  to  remember  that  he  died  just 
as  "Mycenaean  Troy"  was  brought  to  light.  How- 
ever much  his  statements  may  be  modified  or  his  the- 
ories chano;ed,  the  name  of  Heinrich  Schliemann  will 
be  spoken  reverently  as  long  as  history,  literature, 
and  art  have  place  among  men. 

We  are  now  able  to  assign  the  date  of  Stratum  H 
to  about  the  period  of  Cretan  dominion  (2500-2000 
B.C.),  and  in  so  doing  we  recall  the  tradition  that 
Teucer,  founder  of  the  most  ancient  Trojan  city, 
came  from  Crete.  Surely  the  archaic  pottery  of  this 
stratum  is  inferior  to  that  found  at  Thera  (dated  circa 
2000  B.C.). 

81.  Dorpfeld's  Troy.  VI  Stratum.  In  the  excava- 
tions which  Schliemann  and  Dorpf  eld  carried  on  con- 
jointly in  1890  nine  layers  of  settlements  were  dis- 
tinguished instead  of  seven.  In  the  sixth  stratum  (in 
the  megaron  of  VI  A)  was  found  the  lustrous  class  of 
pottery  characteristic  of  the  best  Mycenaean  period.^ 
Ruins  of  city  buildings  were  also  discovered.  The 
neglect  in  former  excavations  to  appreciate  the 
importance  of  this  settlement  is  partly  due  to  the 


1  Schliemann,  Bericht  iiber  die  Ausgrabungen  in  Troja  im 
Jabre  1890  (Taf.  I,  II). 


z 


H 
> 

c 

r 


(I2y) 


130  HOMERIC   LIFE 


fact  that  the  Romans  cut  away  old  buildings  to  ob- 
tain a  level  foundation  for  the  new  city. 

Dorpfeld  continued  the  work  after  Schliemanu's 
death.  Fortification  walls,  dwellings,  gates,  towers 
were  unearthed.^  Some  of  the  streets  were  paved 
with  gypsum.  The  citadel  was  terrace-formed.  The 
houses  consist  of  a  large  apartment  and  antechamber, 
resembling  in  this  respect  the  megaron  of  the  palace 
discovered  at  Gha,  the  private  house  exhumed  close 
to  the  south  wall  of  the  citadel  of  Mycenae,  and  the 
women's  hall  at  Tiryns.  Although  the  large  megara 
at  Mycenae  and  Tiryns  are  distinguished  by  ante- 
chamber (tt/joSo/xos)  and  vestibule  {aWovaa)^  the  Ho- 
meric description  tits  the  simpler  arrangement  of 
a  single  anteroom  designated  by  both  names.  The 
columns  of  the  Trojan  megaron  are  absent,  with 
one  exception.  This  may  show  that  the  design 
was  taken  from  the  buildings  of  the  prehistoric 
settlements,  especially  the  palace  of  the  second  stra- 
tum. The  wall  of  the  city,  built  out  of  blocks  of 
limestone,  is  seen  on  the  south,  west,  east.  The  foun- 
dation wall,  sixteen  feet  thick  and  fifteen  to  twenty 
feet  high,  is  scalable  on  the  east  side.  Upon  this  is 
built  a  perpendicular  upper  wall,  six  feet  thick.  There 
are  three  gates — one  on  the  south,  another  on  the 
southwest,  another  on  the  east.  A  tower  stands  by 
the  south  gate,  another  juts  out  farther  toward  the 
east  wall,  while  at  the  northeast  corner  rises  a  mighty 
tower  which  guards  the  water  supply.' 

*  Dorpfeld,  Troja,  Bericht  uber  die  im  Jahre  1893  in  Troja 
veranstalteten  Ausgrabungen. 
2D6rpfeld,  Mitth.  Ath.,  1894. 


,.^'^.^i^at■:««!fi^it!i^^. 


.^'> 


FiG.  30.    Gkeat  Noktii-East  Towek  at  Tuoy 

(131) 


132  HOMERIC  LIFE 


Vases  of  Mycenaean  pattern  were  exhumed,  includ- 
ing the  histrous  "false-necked"  Mycenaean  jars. 
Each  of  these  jars — unique  specimens  of  ceramic 
art — has  a  closed  neck  with  a  spout  close  beside  it, 
through  which  the  liquid  is  poured,  while  the  handles. 


Fig.  31.     False  Necked 
Mycenaean  Jak 

joining  the  neck,  reseml^le  a  pair  of  stirrups;  hence 
the  German  name,  ' '  stirrup-jar  "  ( Bugelkanne).  Since 
the  general  type  of  pottery  of  this  stratum  is  the  de- 
veloped monochrome  and  probably  a  native  product, 
the  Mycenaean  ware  must  be  explained  as  importa- 
tions.^ 

82.  Mycenaean  Civilization.  What  do  we  mean  by 
"Mycenaean  pottery,"  ""Mycenaean  Troy"?  The 
term  "Mycenaean"  is  roughly  applied  to  those  pal- 
aces, dwelling  houses,  tombs,  pottery,  weapons,  gems, 
and  ornaments  which  exhibit  a  similarity,  more  or  less 
striking,  to  those  found  on  the  citadel  of  Mycenae — 
monuments  which  evidently  are  the  work  of  one  and 
thesamerace.  Recent  excavations  have  shown  theex- 
tent  of  Mycenaean  influence  to  be  broader  than  schol- 
ars of  a  few  years  ago  even  dreamed  of  believing.    We 

^Briickner,  Die  keramischen  Funde,  Troja,  pp.  80-120. 


(133) 


134  HOMERIC   LIFE 


venture  to  burden  the  reader  with  a  list  of  some  forty 
localities  which  unmistakably  had  come  in  touch  with 
this  civilization.  Jt  is  noteworthy  how  many  districts 
mentioned  in  the  Homeric  poems  are  here  included. 
In  addition  to  the  monuments  at  Mycenae,  Tiryns,  and 
Hissarlik/  Mycenaean  remains  have  been  found  at  the 
Argive  Heraeum,^  Nauplia,^  Midea  (near  Nauplia),* 
Asine^  (in  Argolis),  Kampos^  (near  ancient  Gerenia), 
Arkina^  (six  hours  from  Sparta),  Vaphio^  (the  an- 
cient Pharis;  cups  of  exquisite  workmanship  found), 
Pylus^  (Nestor's  home),  Phigalia,^'^  Masarakata^^  (in 
Cephallenia),  jSIegara,^-  Menidi^^  (seven  miles  from 
Athens),  Spata^*  (nine  miles  from  Athens),  Thori- 
cus^^  (in  Attica),  Acropolis  of  Athens^®  (prehistoric 

iScliliemann,  Mycenae  and  Tiryns;  Schucbhardt- Sellers, 
Schliemaun's  Excavations;  Tsountas  and  Manatt,  Mycenaean 
Age;  Frazer,  Pausanias  III.,  97-230;  Dorpfeld,  Troja. 

2  Report  of  American  School  at  Athens;  American  Journal 
of  Archaeologj'. 

3 Frazer,  Pausanias.  111..  141;  WijaKTtKa  Tfjg  'Apxaiol.  'ETaifjiag, 
1892,  52. 

<  Frazer,  op.  cit.,  111.,  231;  Mittb.  Athen.,  17,  95. 
fi Frazer,  op.  cit.,  V.,  601. 

^Frazer,  op.  cit..  III.,  136;  Tsountas,  UpoKTiKa  r^  'Apxawl. 
'ETaifjiac,  1891,  23. 

^Frazer,  op.  cit.,  III.,  136;  'Epj/ieplg  apxmoloyiKv,  1889,  133. 
^Frazer,  op.  cit.  III.,  134;  Gardner,  New  Chapters  in  Greek 
History,  70;  Brunn,  Griechische  Kunstgeschichte,  I..  46. 

^Frazer,  op.  cit.,  V.,  608;  Bulletin deCorresp.  Hellenique,  20, 
388. 

'"Milchhofer,  Anfiinge  der  Kunst  in  Griechenland,  54. 

"Wolters,  Mitth.  Athen..  19,  488. 

i^Furtwangler  and  Loschcke,  Mykenische  Vasen,  53. 

i3Frazer,  op.  cit..  III.,  137;  Lolling,  Mitth.  Athen.,  12,  139. 

"Frazer,  op.  cit..  III.,  143;  Mitth.  Athen.,  3,  83, 

'5 Frazer,  op.  cit..  III..  138,  Af An'ov  apxaioloyiKov,  1890,  159. 

'^Tsountas  and  Manatt,  op.  cit.,  p.  8. 


THE   TROAD  135 


palace),  Halike^  (ancient  Halae  Aixonides,  south- 
east of  Athens),  Kapandriti^  (ancient  Aphi(hia), 
Eleusis,^  Salamis,*  Aegina,^  Calauria,^  Gha^  (near 
Lake  Copais,  identified  by  some  with  the  Homeric 
Arne;     extensive     remains     of    prehistoric    palace 


Fig.  33.     False-Necked 
Amphoka  from  Crete 

found),     Orchomenos^     ("Treasury    of    Minyas"), 
Thebes,'^   Tanagra,!*'   Lebadea,^^   Delphi,^^   Daulis,i^ 

iTsountas  and  Manatt.  op.  cit.,  p.  9. 

^Frazer,  op.  cit.,  III.,  144. 

^Furtwangler  and  Loschcke,  op.  cit.,  40;  Gazette  arch^o- 
logique,  8,  248. 

•»Tsountas  aud  Mauatt,  op.  cit.,  387. 

^Ibid.,  388-394;  Evans,  Journal  of  Hellenic  Studies,  XIII., 
195. 

6Frazer,  V.,  op.  cit.,  596:  Mitth.  Athen..  20,  267. 

^Frazer,  op.  cit.,  V.,  121;  Tsountas  and  Manatt,  op.  cit.,  374. 

^Frazer,  op.  cit.,  V.,  188. 

**Furtwiingler  and  Loschcke,  op.  cit.,  43. 

10 Ibid.,  43. 

"Ibid.,  42. 

i^Frazer,  op.  cit.,  V.,  398;  Bulletin  de  Corresp.  Hcll^uique, 
18,  195. 

i^Furtwiingler  and  Loschcke,  op.  cit.,  43. 


(136) 


THE   TKOAD  137 


Goura  (Phthiotis),  Diraini^  (three  miles  to  the  west 
of  Volo,  the  ancient  lolcus),  Melos'  (four  superim- 
posed settlements,  the  last  of  which  is  Mycenaean), 
lalysus^  (in  Rhodes),  Thera,*  Crete ^  (prehistoric  pal- 
ace at  Cnosus,  and  extensive  Mycenaean  remains  at 
Goulas,  Gortyna,  Courtes,  Kavousi,  Marathokephala, 
Anavlochus,  Erganos),  Cyprus,^  Egypt, ^  Sicily,^ 
Italy.  3 

Of  Mycenaean  pottery  we  distinguish  two  main 
types:  the  older  dull  type,  ornamented  with  linear  dec- 
orations— e.  j7.,  spirals,  parallels,  circles,  curved  and 
straight  lines — painted  iu  dark  red,  violet,  brown,  but 
sometimes  white;  the  later  lustrous  type,  adorned 
with  geometric  patterns,  bands,  spirals,  but  more  gen- 
erally with  scenes  from  marine  life — e.  </.,  the  starfish, 
the  cuttlefish,  seaweed,  etc. — sometimes  with  birds, 
and  later  with  animals  and  men,  brilliantly  glazed 
in  red,  brown,  and  less  frequently  in  white. 

The  discoveries  now  being  made  in  Crete  seem  to 
point  to  that  island  as  the  home  of  the  Mycenaean 
cultus.  The  prestige  of  Mycenae  may  have  followed 
the  decline  of  Cretan  supremacy.     At  any  rate,  2000 


iprazer,  op.  cit.,  III.,  140;  Mitth.  Athen.,  9,  99. 

2  Annual  Report  of  British  School,  3,  1. 

3Frazer,  op.  cit..  III.,  147;  Furtwangler  and  Loschcke,  op. 
cit.,  1. 

*  Fouque,  Santorin  et  ses  Eruptions. 

«A.  J.  Evans,  Journal  of  Hellenic  Studies;  Halbherr,  Amer- 
ican Journal  of  Archaeology;  Boyd,  American  Journal  of  Ar- 
chaeology. 

^Murray,  Smith,  and  Walters,  Excavations  in  Cyprus. 

'Flinders  Petrie,  Journal  of  Hellenic  Studies,  11,  271. 

8 Furtwiingler  and  Loschcke,  op.  cit.,  47. 

9Ibid.,  48. 


138  HOMERIC   LIFE 

B.  C.  is  not  too  early  a  date  at  which  to  place  the  most 
flourishing  period  of  this  civilization  in  Crete,  for 
Mycenaean  remains  have  been  found  in  Thera  buried 
under  volcanic  debris  of  an  eruption  of  about  1800 
B.C.^  Legends  of  a  vast  Cretan  empire  are  prob- 
ably reminiscences  of  that  mighty  maritime  nation, 
once  supreme  on  Mediterranean  v^^aters. 

83.  Was  There  a  Real  Troy?  With  only  Schliemann's 
"Burnt  City"  before  them,  we  do  not  wonder  that 
scholars  were  skeptical.  Opinions  were  divided. 
One  extreme  view  declared:  "We  know  nothing  of 
Bion,  in  spite  of  Hissarlik  and  Schliemann.  There 
are  found  interesting  excavations  in  the  land  south  of 
the  Hellespont,  but  this  is  no  proof  that  Troy  was 
once  on  this  spot.  A  pious  opinion  must  not  stand 
in  place  of  proof.  "^  In  implicit  faith  that  the  Myce- 
naean discoveries  are  an  exact  picture  of  the  Homeric 
age,  Schulze  swung  to  the  opposite  extreme.  "The 
heroes  of  the  Trojan  War,"  he  asserts,  "used  elegant 
vessels,  wore  seal  rings  upon  their  fingers,  were  at- 
tired in  ornaments  of  gold,  and  have  left  as  an  in- 
heritance to  our  day  their  faces  outlined  in  gold 
masks.  "^ 

The  picture  of  life  in  Homer  is  practically  the  same 
for  Greeks  and  Trojans.  Both  races  have  the  same 
political,  moral,  and  religious  conditions.  Comment- 
ing on  this,  Leaf  said:'*  "But  we  know  for  certain 

iFouqii6,  Santorin  et  ses  Eruptions,  argues  for  2000  B.C. 

2  W.  Ribbeck,  Homerische  Miscellen,  1888. 

^Mykenai,  Eine  kritische  Untersuchung  der  Schliemann- 
schen  Alterthiimer  unter  Vergleichung  Rnssischer  Funds, 
1880. 

•* Introduction  to  Schuchhardt-Sellers,  1891. 


THE   TROAD  139 


that  the  dwellers  upon  the  hill  of  Hissarlik  were  at  a 
completely  diti'ereut  and  altogether  lower  stage  of 
civilization  than  the  royal  race  of  Mycenae.  Scarcely 
half  a  dozen  objects  have  been  found  which  show  a 
point  of  contact.  If,  therefore,  Homer  correctly  de- 
scribes the  Achaeans,  his  Trojans  are  quite  imagina- 
ry." Ludwich,  although  admitting  that  most  Myce- 
naean finds  are  older  than  the  Homeric  age,  yet  de- 
clared them  to  show  that  the  Iliad  is  no  picture  of 
the  imagination,  but  rests  upon  a  real  foundation,^ 

What  shall  be  our  verdict,  now  that  a  new  Troy 
has  been  brought  to  light?  Shall  we  accept  Dorp- 
feld's  positive  words:  "Stratum  VI  is  the  Homeric 
Troy,  destroyed  by  the  Greeks"  {Stratum  Vlist  das 
homerische  Troja^  von  den  GriecJien  zerstort)?  At 
any  rate,  we  are  sure  that  here  is  a  city  which  had 
come  in  touch  with  Mycenaean  civilization,  and  we 
can  believe  that  its  destruction  formed  the  historical 
basis  of  the  poem.  "The  differences,"  says  Frazer, 
"between  the  Achaean  civilization,  as  revealed  to  us 
by  Homer,  and  the  Mycenaean  civilization,  as  ex- 
hibited in  the  monuments,  are  to  be  explained  by  the 
somewhat  later  date  of  the  poems,  .  .  .  having  been 
composed  at  a  time  when  the  old  civilization  .  .  .  sur- 
vived only  in  popular  tradition  and  the  lays  of  min- 
strels as  the  fading  memory  of  a  golden  age  of  the 
past." 

If  the  sixth  city  be  the  Homeric  Troy,  as  Dorpfeld 
supposes,  when  dwelt  the  first  settlers  upon  this  hill, 
and  what  manner  of  men  were  they?     Of  the  towns 

'  Schliemanns  Ausgrabungen  und  die  homerische  Kultur, 
1893.      • 


140  HOMERIC    LIFE 


that  once  flourished  here,  even  the  names  of  the  more 
remote  had  passed  into  legend,  and  their  very  site  had 
been  forgotten.  Their  rise  and  fall  in  the  great  cycle 
of  time  was  like  our  own  passing  through  them  within 
the  narrower  compass  of  our  years. 

Fuit  Ilium  et  ingens 
Gloria  Teucroi'um. 


HISSAELIK 

We  translate  the  following  (§§  84-86)  from  the  re- 
port of  Dr.  Wilhelm  Dbrpfeld,  in  his  Troja^  1893. 

84.  The  VI  Stratum  and  the  Homeric  Pergamos.  Let 
us  compare  Homer's  description  of  the  citadel  of 
Troy  with  what  has  actually  been  found. 

1.  The  Pergamos  of  Troy,  according  to  Homer, 
was  not  a  level  citadel;  for  near  the  dwellings  lay 
£v  aKpoTaTT]  TToAct  (X,  172)  an  altar  to  Zeus.  There- 
fore, according  to  the  poet's  conception,  there  was  a 
highest  point  in  the  citadel  where  the  altar  to  Zeus 
was  situated,  and  perhaps  also  the  two  temples  of 
Athena  and  Apollo.  The  citadel  of  the  II  stratum 
is  not  at  all  in  accord  with  such  a  description,  for  it 
is  quite  level.  But  in  the  VI  stratum  the  middle 
and  northern  parts  are  actually  higher  than  the  rest. 
The  existence  of  a  temple  on  this  spot  was  felt  even 
down  into  later  times. 

2.  The  buildings  at  Tiryns  are  erected  partly  in  Cy- 
clopean manner,  with  large  or  small  unhewn  stones, 
and  partly  with  clay  brick.  At  Mycenae,  in  addition 
to  such  walls  on  the  citadel,  we  find  also  separate  sec- 
tions of  walls  constructed  of  polished  stone.  Accord- 
ing to  the  words  of  Homer,  we  must  sup])ose  that 
in  the  Trojan  citadel  the  buildings  were  built  of 
polished  stone — for  the  dwellings  of  the  sons  and 
sons-in-law  of  Priam  were  $caToio  XlOolo  (Z,  244). 
Although  the  description  does  not  at  all  suit  the 
buildings  at  Tiiyns,  it  is  exactly  in  accord  with  the 

(141) 


142  HOMERIC   LIFE 


dwellings  found  in  our  citadel.  This  is  all  the  more 
noteworthy  because  it  was  formerly  thought  that  in 
such  primitive  times  walls  and  towers  were  not  yet 
built  of  well-hewn  stones. 

3.  In  the  Pergamos  of  Troy ,  Homer  is  acquainted 
with  quite  a  number  of  separate  buildings,  both  dwell' 
ings  and  temples,  which,  though  entirely  separate, 
yet  lie  close  together.  In  the  citadel  at  Tiryus  no 
such  separate  buildings  are  found.  At  most,  we  can 
see  a  separate  building  in  the  structure  usually  desig- 
nated as  the  women's  apartment.  Such  is  not  the 
case  in  our  citadel,  but  all  the  buildings  thus  far  dis- 
closed are  actually  separate  structures  which  lie  very 
near  each  other. 

4.  The  house  of  Alexandros,  according  to  Homer 
(Z,  316),  consisted  of  three  parts:  the  thalamos^  the 
doma^  and  the  aide.  By  thalamos  we  are  to  under- 
stand a  closed  apartment  which  formed  the  interior 
of  the  dwelling  and  served  as  a  sleeping  room.  The 
doma  is  a  general  reception  room  in  front  of  the  tha- 
lamos., thus  being  the  anteroom  of  the  house.  The 
aule  must  be  a  court  situated  in  front  of  the  dwelling, 
under  the  open  sky.  A  like  threefold  division  is 
noted  in  other  single  houses  mentioned  in  the  Ho- 
meric poems — e.  g..,  the  home  of  Eumaeus  (I,  5  ff. ) 
andthehutof  Achilles  (fl,  452  ff. ).  In  both  these  pas- 
sages we  read  of  an  open  court,  of  a  prodomos.,  a  room 
in  which  strangers  are  received  and  sometimes  sleep; 
and,  finally,  of  an  inner  room,  in  which  the  hearth  and 
couches  are  found.  In  the  royal  palaces,  such  as  we- 
see  at  Tiryus  and  Mycenae,  this  threefold  division  is 
apparent,  but  not  so  clearly,  because  the  separate  parts 
are  composed   of   numerous  rooms.      The  court  is 


HISSARLIK  143 

double;  the  doma  consists  of  a  hall,  antechamber,  and 
vestibule;  and,  instead  of  a  single  thalamos^  we  have 
a  special  women's  apartment  with  numerous  rooms 
beside  it.  This  same  threefold  division  appears  in 
later  Graeco-Roman  houses,  in  the  atrium^  the  tahli- 
nuTTi^  &nd  the  peristi/lum. 

Several  buildings  of  our  citadel  consist  of  this  three- 
fold arrangement,  because  there  is  no  doubt  that  be- 
fore each  there  was  an  open  court.  The  large  closed 
room  is  evidently  the  thalamos^  and  in  the  half -open 
antechamber  we  see,  in  all  probability,  the  doma^ 
which  in  form  would  correspond  to  the  later  taWt- 
nurn.     The  open  court  in  front  is  the  aide. 

85.  Table  of  the  Nine  Strata 

I.  Lowest  primitive  settlement;  walls  of  small 
rubble-stones  and  clay;  primitive  linds;  date  (merely 
conjectural),  3000  to  2500  B.C. 

II.  Prehistoric  citadel,  with  strong  defensive  walls 
and  large  dwellings  of  brick;  three  times  destroyed 
and  rebuilt;  monochrome  pottery;  many  objects  of 
bronze,  silver,  and  gold;  date  (merely  conjectural), 
2500  to  2000  B.C. 

III.  rV,  and  V.  Three  historic  villages,  built  over 
the  ruins  of  the  second  burned  city;  dwellings  of 
small  stones  and  brick;  similar  old  Trojan  pottery; 
date,  about  2000  to  1500  B.C. 

VI.  Troy;  citadel  of  the  Mycenaean  age;  massive 
wall,  with  a  great  tower  and  stately  houses  of  well- 
wrought  stone;  the  Pergamos  of  which  Homer  sang; 
developed  monochrome  Trojan  pottery;  imported  My- 
cenaean vases;  date,  about  1500  to  1000  B.C. 

VII  and  Vm.  Villages— one  of  the  earlier,   the 


144:  HOMERIC  LIFE. 


other  of  a  later  Greek  period;  two  separate  strata  of 
simple  stone  houses,  built  above  the  ruins  of  the  VI 
stratum;  native  monochrome  pottery  and  almost  every 
known  variety  of  Greek  ceramics;  date,  1000  B.C.  to 
the  Christian  era. 

IX.  Acropolis  of  the  Roman  Ilium,  with  a  famous 
temple  of  Athena  and  tine  buildings  of  marble;  Ro- 
man pottery  and  other  objects;  marble  inscriptions; 
date,  beginning  of  the  Christian  era  to  600  A.D. 

86.  The  Dimensions  of  the  Sixth  City  Compared  with 

Other  Citadels 

1.  Troy,  n  Stratum;  circuit,  350  meters;  area, 
8,000  square  meters. 

2.  Troy,  VI  Stratum;  circuit,  500  meters;  area, 
20,000  square  meters. 

3.  Tiryns;  circuit,  700  meters;  area,  20,000  square 
meters. 

4.  Acropolis  of  Athens;  circuit,  700  meters;  area, 
25,000  square  meters. 

5.  Mycenae;  circuit,  900  meters;  area,  30,000 
square  meters. 


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